Newton's Laws
by Elpin
Summary: In a world where the muggles know everything, you either hide or fight. Draco's been hiding, but he's about to be pulled into what the government is calling "the War on Magic." Harry/Draco slash
1. Human Animal

**Title**: Newton's Laws

**Pairing**: **Harry/Draco**, possible other pairings as story progresses

Rating: Probable rating M

**Warnings: Implied drug abuse, violence, character death (not H/D).** **Important**: More warnings may be added later as the story is written.

**Summary**: In one part of town a young man, a boy, was attacked and left for dead. The victim was rushed to hospital, smiling, near death. Across town another young man, a boy in body, something else in mind, lay on a rotten bed in the basement of a rundown building no one seemed to own. It's simply there, just like him. To him he's been here longer; the building came up around him later. (I'll probably add a better summary once the story gets going!)

**New summary**: In a world where the muggles know everything, you either hide or fight. Draco's been hiding in the muggle world for years, but he is about to be pulled into what the government is officially calling "the War on Magic."

**Beta**: A huge thanks to Hidden Lily who gave me the courage to post this :)

**Note**: Please let me know if this is completely insane or worth writing more about! :)

-:-

_Chapter one: Human Animal _

It was a well-illuminated city in the dark. In one part of town a young man, a boy, was attacked and left for dead. The victim was rushed to hospital, smiling, near death. Across town another young man, a boy in body, something else in mind, lay on a rotten bed in the basement of a rundown building no one seemed to own. It's simply there, just like him. To him he's been here longer; the building came up around him later.

He took a long drag from his cigarette, wishing he had the energy to get up. He would feel better then, if he did something. He knew this, but did not care.

Amazing.

Fucking brilliant.

I'm a bloody philosopher, he thought disparagingly at himself, snorting, the only sound he could be bothered to make. The only thing he does is thinking. He closed his eyes and laid his head back, letting the smoke rise from his nostrils like a sleeping dragon.

He pretended to go to sleep. His body was uncovered except for a pair of shorts. His skin was so pale you would think it was see-through, only that would mean he was an empty shell, which perhaps he was. His hair was a dirty blond; as light as his skin but filled with filth that is. His body was thin, like fragile glass. Sharp, jagged; it could easily cut you.

Animals, he thought as he heard a crash and an angry yell from someone in the building. It's so terribly amusing how he can be so alike them, yet so different, at the exact same time. Animals have instincts, a will to survive that is written in their code, but surely if he had any he wouldn't be killing himself? He felt distinctly that he had no will to live: he did not care. Not one tiny bit. It was damn liberating. And he didn't even care that he didn't care. He couldn't, for he cared about nothing.

No.

He was an animal. He had been reduced to it. By focusing everything on this one need, it makes him an animal, doesn't it? A very strange one, sure, but an animal nonetheless. A beast.

He smiled.

A monster. He liked that; liked the thought of children running scared from him, from "mummy's delicate little boy."

A mobile rang. He flicked the filter still between his fingers away and dug under the pillow. He squinted at the buttons until he found the right one.

'Yes?'

'Fucking Christ, did you hear?' He rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly. He should have gotten up for this.

'Hear what?'

'Lucky Bastard's in hospital, high as a kite on morphine.'

'How did he manage that?'

'Hex and run.' Huh. A pause.

'Who are we talking about?'

'Who'd ya think? Charlie.' Oh, right, Lucky Bastard. He couldn't recall the reason for the nickname.

'Who is this?'

'Jesus mate, you alright?'

'Don't really care.' There was a sound like a bang, a curse, and then the phone went dead. He tossed it aside and fumbled for another cigarette. A stretch of time loomed in front of him. Should he get up?

In the end he did.

He stumbled from the bed, pulled on his clothes (just a damp grey t-shirt and really worn jeans), and crawled up the stairs and out into the air. Despite it being night he squinted at the streetlights. His feet dragged. He shuffled slowly from building to building, sniffing the air.

What time was it? He didn't care.

Where was he, exactly? He didn't care.

As he walked the buildings remained dilapidated, but seemed to be more occupied. There were a lot of boarded up windows, but still light coming from between the cracks, and many warning signs on the doors. He didn't bother reading any of them; he had seen them all before.

Suddenly, a car came screeching around the corner, speeding up down the road before coming to an abrupt halt right in front of him. It was a miracle they hadn't crashed into the anything. The side windows were tinted, but they were rolled down. Two young men sat in the front, both wearing camouflage jackets. They were clearly armed, but not in any military.

'Danny,' the one in the passenger seat greeted. 'Heard about Lucky Bastard?' He spoke with an accent.

'Yeah,' Danny replied, shrugging. There was a bang heard in the distance, none of the three looked up. 'What are you lot up to?'

'Get in, there's a meeting tonight. The PM's made a speech today, did you see it?' Danny shook his head. 'You can watch it at HQ. Adam says he's got a treat for everybody. Get in.' Danny shuffled his feet, glancing down the street. He could see how the old houses seemed to lean into the road a little. Somewhere down that street was a gaping hole where there used to be life…

'I gotta get something to eat, mate,' Danny said apologetically. 'I'm knackered. You guys just head on without me.' The two men narrowed their eyes slightly at the excuse.

'Listen, Danny, it's not safe for you to be wandering around alone, especially not around these parts,' the man glanced down the street, affecting a little shudder of disgust. 'So get. In.' Danny knew he had no choice. He got in the back seat and shut up.

The drive was relatively short. The "headquarters" were located in a ten-story old hotel. It was slowly falling apart. Danny followed the pair upstairs to one of the conference rooms. Chairs were scattered about, and on the stage a computer monitor sat on a chair. Another three young men sat in front of it, watching the news. Danny went forward and sat down beside them. An official-looking man was making a speech to a group of reporters.

'… Our fight is far from over, but the numerous arrests and neutralizings this week give us hope. Once again we urge the public to report any paranormal activity and to remember all safety precautions. Stay armed at all times, travel in groups. Anyone not familiar with modern terms or appliances is suspect. Thank you.' With that the man left the podium and ignored the yelling reporters.

'Wanna watch it from the beginning?' Danny glanced sideways at the man who had asked. He didn't know him. He shook his head. It was doubtful there was anything said he wanted to know in the speech. Someone removed the computer and people started arriving. Danny remained seated, ignoring the growing noise level completely. He sloughed in his chair, feeling sleepy, hungry and itchy….

Someone shouted and startled him awake. He glanced up and saw Adam was on the podium, holding his arms aloft. The room was full of people, mostly young men, but a few women and older people too. Adam put down his arms as the room quieted.

'Our government think these people can be put behind bars and "neutralized" but their theory is flawed. The only thing that works against a wart is to break its wand and put a bullet through the head.' There was a cry of support at this and people punched the air with their fists. Most of them were standing, but Danny remained seated, sitting in the front row and looking tiredly at the stage. A wart was a nickname. People didn't want to use witch or wizard or warlock or mage. They wanted something derogatory and simple.

A wart.

Something that needed to be removed from the earth.

'The fact is that the warts are too good at hiding. They can never blend in, but they can hide. Technology has allowed us to find them, to break through their magic,' Adam spat the last word as if it was acid on his tongue. 'But technology can only get us so far. What we need to do is take out their hope, their will to continue, and tonight, we have.' There was a hush when the people registered these words. Adam had a mad glint in his eyes. He was under thirty, with an unshaved and dirty face but clearly handsome. He wore combat trousers and vest, and a "Newton is law" button on his chest.

'Bring out the prisoner!' he barked. To the right of the stage two muscular men dragged a near-unconscious man onto the stage. They both had their pistols up against either side of the man's skull. His head was down, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth, his right eyebrow and his forehead. His clothes were dirty, a stained red t-shirt and jeans. Someone had tried to put black robes on him, but since his hands were tied behind his back the robe fell off as they moved centre-stage.

They threw him to the floor and he gave a small groan of pain since he hadn't been able to shield his face much. The pair of guards kept their guns trained on him, but moved back so Adam could stand over him, smirking.

The room was silent.

Danny held his breath. He knew exactly who it was.

'This,' Adam announced, 'is _their_ leader. A very. Big. Wart.' He punctuated his slow statement with a nice kick in the ribs. Harry barely moved, but he groaned. 'No need to fear. He is heavily drugged. He is neutralized.'

'Kill him!' Someone yelled from the crowd. The shout was taken up and a chant started.

'Kill the wart!'

Adam held up his hands and the crowd quieted down again. 'Not yet,' he declared. 'Don't you see? He can tell us things. Hiding places, their plans. We will show him to the world so that the warts will all know and despair. I have already sent a message to the government and they are willing to reward us if we share any information we gain. That means the latest weapons and recognition for our group.' Adam started pacing the stage, his eyes shining with determination and eagerness. The crowd listened avidly. Danny stared at the body.

'In the beginning we were called vigilantes, outlaws. But the governments of the world had to acknowledge the threat from the warts. Now, they will acknowledge that _our_ group has the solution. We will wipe their unnaturalness from the earth!'

The crowd erupted in cheers. Feet were stamped and a gun shot or two went off. Adam, a big smirk on his face, eventually held up his hands again and went over to his prisoner. He crouched, gripped Harry's mop of hair and pulled his head up.

Harry's face was twisted in pain, his teeth clenched. He was bloody and bruised.

'Harry Potter. The wart that no one could catch. I've got you now.' Slowly, the green eyes opened. He obviously didn't need glasses anymore because he focused on the person sitting in the front row perfectly.

Draco Malfoy.


	2. Incentive

**Title**: Newton's Laws

**Pairing**: Harry/Draco, possible other pairings IF I continue this.

**Rating**: Probable rating: hard R

**Warnings**: Drug abuse, violence, slash **Important**: More warnings may be added later as the story is written.

**Summary**: In a world where the muggles know everything, you either hide or fight. Draco's been hiding in the muggle world for years, but he is about to be pulled into what the government is officially calling "the War on Magic."

**Beta**: A huge thanks to Hidden Lily

-:-

Chapter two: Incentive

Eventually, Harry was taken away and Adam moved on to other things. Danny didn't listen; his thoughts were elsewhere, in another world; a world he had thought was lost to him forever. He had wanted to remain lost.

The room started to clear out. Many of the young men had nowhere to go but to one of the abandoned rooms in the hotel. Danny knew where Adam stayed and where he kept his prisoners. He waited until people had gone and then took the stairs up to the top floor. A large suite was set aside as their leader's domain. Adam lounged on a divan, smiling when Danny entered. Two guards on either side of the door patted him down, but they trusted him so let him pass quickly. Adam beckoned him over.

'Danny, where have you been hiding?' The younger man sat down on the couch across from the divan. In the table between them an assortment of food was scattered, most of it spoiled. The suite did not resemble the once stately room it had once been.

'Around. Do you have any gravy on you?' Adam's smile stretched into a big smirk. It was his trademark look. He scooped some chips up from the table and stuffed them in his mouth. Danny fidgeted. Now that the words were out he felt the need return. He hadn't been on Gravitation very long, but he had tried all of the new drugs. All of them had names that would appeal to his generation; the one set to kill anything that went against the laws of nature.

'Peter,' Adam barked, waving his hand. 'Get me a shot.' Danny watched nervously as one of the guards, just as muscular as the others, went and got something from another room. He handed it wordlessly to Adam and went back to his post. Adam held up the syringe. It had the cap still on and seemed perfectly clean, not that Danny cared. Inside was an almost glittering white substance. The milk of the earth, some hippie-wannabies called it. Danny licked his lips, reaching out for it. Adam pulled it out of his reach just in time.

'What do you want for it?' Danny pleaded. 'I'm broke.'

'You're always broke,' Adam laughed. 'That's why your arse is sore all the time.' Danny felt his cheeks heat up. He tried to tell himself he didn't care. He didn't. It was just a body, nothing more, but age-old teachings still clung to him, and somewhere deep inside him a boy wanted to go back to being innocent. 'Here, take it, you can pay me tomorrow. Have fun.' Danny eagerly took the syringe. He held it carefully in his hand, staring at the white gravy with lounging. His lips turned down slightly at the corners.

'Can I see him Adam? Alone? Just for a moment?' Adam's eyes had immediately narrowed.

'Why?'

'He was one of them.' Adam's eyes shone with comprehension.

It was an old lie that had served him very well. Danny had told people when the war started that he had been kidnapped as an eleven-year-old and kept as a pet by the warts. That was why he didn't know a lot about recent history or terms. Oddly enough, if his father hadn't insisted on survival skills in case they needed to escape into the real world during their own war, he never would have survived once people started knowing what to look for. Since he knew how to work appliances and had been with them for months before the truth came out, no one had ever suspected him.

The real world. He had even lost his own vocabulary, but he wasn't consciously aware of the difference.

'You want to look him in the eyes?'

'I just want to ask him why. I won't kill him, I swear,' Danny kept his eyes down and focused on the syringe. Adam gave a soft snort.

'I doubt you could…. Sure why not, I'm in a very good mood today. Go on.' Danny mumbled his thanks, put the syringe in his pocket and rose, going across the room and down the hall. He passed a dining-room, then a billiard-room before finally coming to one of the bedrooms. A guard stood outside.

'Adam said I could see him,' Danny said, his voice soft, his eyes down. He hated the muscle Adam employed, especially when they were allowed him as a reward when he had payments to make. Adam was never violent. The man patted him down.

'He's pretty neutralized, but he's probably still awake,' the guard warned. Danny nodded and slipped inside when the guard opened the door slightly.

Inside the room was dark, only the light from the city shone through the wide windows. The bed was rumpled and the body on it was still, almost dead looking. Danny closed his eyes and placed his hand very lightly on the door handle.

Like all warts, and indeed all creatures on the earth, extreme conditions had made them adapt. Many had lost their wands, but only the strongest in body and will had managed to start performing wandless spells. Danny had broken his own wand when he left, but he had quickly realised that sometimes his needs made him break the laws.

The very first law against warts had been simple and very effectively implemented: It is illegal to break the laws of physics. It had been the first, but certainly not the last.

Danny focused all his magic on the door and a very soft silencing and locking spell slipped into place. Luckily, gangs like Adam's didn't have the technology to detect spells and no human could feel magic of course. Danny dreaded the day when the scientist finally created a more cheap and portable detection system that could be distributed to the entire population.

He turned and went around the bed so he could see Harry's face. The man seemed to be asleep. It was odd, seeing the face so blank and without glasses. The man was bound, hands and feet, and gagged.

As if the man could sense Danny's presence, he opened his eyes and stared up at his visitor. Danny could see the fierce green eyes even in the poor light. He kneeled by the bed and reached out, pulling the gag out.

'Malfoy!' Harry hissed loudly and Danny immediately placed his hand over the offending mouth.

'Quiet,' he whispered. 'I don't know how strong my silencing spell is.' Harry's eyes blazed with questions, rage and frustration, but he nodded so Danny removed his hand. 'And that's not my name. It's Danny.'

'Malfoy,' Harry repeated exasperated. Danny shook his head violently and turned his head away. 'Draco,' Harry tried. Danny didn't answer; he just shook his head again. Harry sighed. 'Fine, Danny, what the hell are you doing here?'

Finally, Danny looked back at the wart. 'I live not far from here,' he said as if that explained everything. 'I just wanted to… I don't know, actually,' he shrugged. 'See if you were really real. I guess you are.' He started to rise.

'Wait!' Harry hissed, keeping his voice lower this time. 'You have to help me. Untie me.'

'I'm sorry, I can't do that,' Danny said. 'You should have thought of this before you-'

'Before I what? Got captured?' Danny shrugged. He didn't care really. He told himself that again and again.

'Broke the law,' he said simply.

'Danny,' Harry ground out through clenched teeth. 'You need to help me and escape with me. People thought you were dead. Your father-'

'My father?'

'Yes, your father's been helping us.'

Danny shook his head again, getting to his feet and turning away. 'My father's in Azkaban.'

'And how long do you think the Dementors remained in our world once they realised the Muggles knew? Most of the prisoners fled, but Lucius came to us and offered his help. I decided he'd served his time. He's saved my life more than once since.' Danny didn't believe what Harry was saying. It was ludicrous. His father was locked away. Everything had been ruined. 'Merlin, Danny, please! Don't you care what's happening to our kind?'

'No, I don't care,' Danny said with as much conviction he had left in him. He started for the door.

'They'll kill me!' Harry cried. Danny shot him an annoyed look at the noise level. He went back, kneeled and tried to get the gag back in place. Harry's eyes were wide and wild. 'I won't tell them anything and they'll kill me. They'll fill my skull with bullets,' he pleaded. He looked genuinely afraid. 'I don't want to die like this Draco.'

'Danny.'

'Whatever! If you don't help me you're as good as killing me yourself.' Danny sighed. He shouldn't be doing this. He let the gag slip from his fingers as he reached his hands around Harry's head, placing his palms against the back of the skull. 'What are you doing?' Harry asked as Danny closed his eyes.

'The drugs they've given you, they cut off the connection between the magic control centre of your brain and the rest. I'm going to use a kind of Legilimancy and cast a sobering charm on the affected nerves.'

'What?' Harry had obviously not understood a word. 'How do you know that?'

'They explained the process on the news when the drug was first introduced. I figured out how to get past it through trial and error,' Danny explained simply. 'The Legilimancy doesn't go into your consciousness, but your physical brain, and the sobering charm works against any foreign substance affecting you. It's the logical spell to use.' Danny went still as he felt Harry's brain, almost as if he was holding it in the palm of his hand.

'They got me with a gas. Someone betrayed us. I've never seen them use gas before,' Harry mumbled defensively.

'They've been having trouble making it work in gas form, but if what you say is true they've just gain a massive advantage.' Draco found the affected nerves and cast the spell. Harry gasped as he regained control of his magic. As Danny pulled away Harry was already free of his bonds and sitting up in bed, rubbing his sore wrists.

'Thanks,' he said. 'How do they know about the magic centre of the brain? I didn't even know there was such a thing.'

'That's why they are beating you,' Danny said dispassionately. 'They use science and technology. The irony is of course that they've managed to understand a lot about something they thought defied explanation, yet they're still calling it unnatural.' Harry nodded thoughtfully at that and got out of bed. He went to the window and opened it before turning back to Danny. He held out his hand.

'Come with me,' he said.

'No, this is my life.'

'Then you're as good as dead,' Harry reminded him. Danny eyed the hand. If he took it everything would fall apart, again. But would it be better than if he remained? Every day here was a risk that they would discover his secret. Yet, Danny almost feared going back even more. He didn't even understand why; he knew that world had changed completely since he'd left. His father was out…

'Come on,' Harry said, grabbing Danny's hand and pulling him towards the window.

'Wait!' Danny cried. 'Why are we going out the window? Can't you apparate wandless?'

'I can,' Harry said, sounding a bit breathless as he leaned out and looked down. Ten stories was more than high enough. 'But I always need a little incentive, like a threat on my life. Don't worry, I always manage it before I hit the ground.'

'You've jumped out of windows before?'

'The first time was an accident, but yeah, I've done it, and it works. Come on.'

'No way,' Danny yanked his hand free. 'I am not jumping out a window on the tenth floor!'

'Look, I can only find the power when I know I have to!' Harry yelled in frustration. Suddenly, the door handle turned, followed by a knock, and another. There was a slight pause and then a gunshot made both men jump as someone shot a hole right by the keyhole.

'There's your incentive, now get us out of here!' Danny yelled, throwing his arms around Harry's neck and held on tight. The door banged open, almost splintering it. Three pistols and a rifle were trained on them.

Harry's arms came around him and Danny squeezed his eyes shut just as he was being squeezed through a tiny point.

The last thing he heard was Adam's voice, sounding strange to his ears.

'Let him go! Danny!'


	3. Azkaban

Beta: A huge thanks to Hidden Lily

Newton's Laws, chapter 3: _Azkaban _

Danny had buried his face in Harry's neck just before their disapparation. He shivered and tightened his grip when a deafening noise filled his ears and it felt like they had been swallowed up by a storm.

The wind howled and threatened to pluck them from the earth. There was also the clear sound of waves crashing against rocks. There was rain blowing into them as and Danny shivered from the cold; his flimsy t-shirt being not near enough to shield against anything.

Curiosity compelled him eventually and he lifted his head. He stared at the scene before them. They were indeed in a storm. Through the darkness, Danny could discern the shape of landscape before them.

They stood on the very edge of a rocky island, somewhere in the middle of the sea. Before them a short path led up to a huge stone building, completely devoid of any windows. It towered high above them, but it had no spires like Hogwarts; just a big rectangular formation, as if someone has simply dropped a perfectly shaped rock on the island. The only sign that one could actually enter the building was a great iron door right in front of them. Danny doubted if ten men could move it on their own, or even twenty.

'Where the bloody hell are we?!' Danny yelled over the screaming wind, still holding tight to Harry in case he was actually blown away. Harry held just as tightly back.

'Azkaban!' he answered. Danny had known, but he still shook his head. 'It's headquarters now!' Harry continued. 'The only unplottable place left in this part of the world. Come on, let's get inside!' Harry rushed forward, pulling Danny after him with a firm hand.

Despite its apparent weight, the door opened relatively quickly as they approached. They slipped inside and it closed behind them, leaving them in complete darkness for a moment. Danny held his breath.

Then torches flared on either side of a wide hallway. About ten metres in front of them a staircase led upwards into more darkness. The walls were just as bare as the outside of the former prison.

'Did you apparate us inside the wards?' Danny asked.

'Yes, anyone who can apparate is welcome here,' Harry replied, the implied meaning was clear: all magical people could come. 'This is one of the few secure places left. We have a small community living here.'

'Jesus,' Danny muttered. Harry gave him a very odd look. 'What?' Harry shook his head and let go of the man's hand. Danny felt his fear spike for some reason. Just as they were about to move forward more torches started to flare at the top of the stairs, following the movement of people as they rushed downwards.

Hermione Granger reached the bottom first. She looked just as bushy-haired as before, but the deep circles under her eyes told of a sleepless night. She wore casual robes in dark purple. She rushed forward into Harry's arms.

'Harry, thank Merlin! How did you escape?' She pulled back, checking him over with her eyes.

'I had help,' Harry gestured towards Danny and all eyes turned to him. There were gasps all around.

Ron Weasley had followed Hermione. He was even taller than before, wearing simple brown robes. He too looked tired and much older than the years should have left him. Then came-…

Danny watched as his father slowly descended the last few steps. The man's eyes were wider and filled with more emotion than Danny could remember. He looked as if he'd seen a wart- But no, that wasn't a good expression to use anymore, was it? He wore a set of green robes with silver highlights. His cane, however, was missing.

'Draco?' he whispered hoarsely. Danny remained petrified, his face completely blank. He had no idea how his father would react. In his dreams he had often seen his father yelling at him about the failure he knew he was. He had failed, broken his wand, and run. He had become what his father once despised. A human- no, a muggle was the right word. Muggles who killed them now. His father's worst nightmare no doubt made reality.

'Draco rescued me,' Harry explained quietly. Danny tried not to flinch at the name. He had learned to avoid it out of necessity. It was much too abnormal for the real world.

'Draco,' Lucius repeated, almost brokenly. He came forward, his steps quickening, until his arms came around his son. Danny remained stiff as he was held tight to his father's chest. 'My son. We thought you were dead. My son. You're alive. Thank Merlin!' Lucius whispered fiercely into Danny's ear.

What did this mean? Danny heard the words and felt his father's arms around him. He started shaking. Was this real? He breathed in through his nose. The smell propelled him backwards in time instantly and he leaned his head forward to get more of it. Lucius' hand immediately came up and cradled his son's head. For a moment Danny wished he could remain like that for the rest of eternity.

That was not possible, however, and Lucius pulled back somewhat abruptly.

'How is this possible?' he demanded, looking beseechingly into his son's eyes for answers. Danny couldn't possibly answer. His father would be so terribly ashamed of him if he knew. 'Where have you been all this time?'

'Perhaps questions like that can wait,' Harry intervened and Danny couldn't help the grateful glance he shot in the man's direction. 'Why don't you get cleaned up and rest? Then some food, I think, is in order.'

'Yes, look at you, you're filthy,' Lucius declared as he gave his son a proper glance-over. Danny felt his cheeks heat up. His t-shirt was grey with filth and his jeans were three sizes too big and had ripped holes in several places, none of them for style reasons. 'Come with me.' Lucius put his arm around his son and guided him towards the stairs. Danny could do nothing but obey. He glanced one last time over his shoulder at Harry as they reached the stairs.

The man was already talking animatedly with his friends, but he looked up as if he felt Danny's gaze and their eyes met. Danny found a wave of reassurance shooting through him. Harry had brought him here, plucked him from his life in the real world. It was his fault, all of what was to come, but Danny tried to believe those eyes.

His father led him up several flights of stairs and down seemingly endless hallways. Lucius' hand on his back was a steady pressure. Danny felt his heart pounding, but otherwise he was completely still. He felt itchy… so incredibly itchy.

'Here we are,' Lucius murmured as they reached a large wooden door. He pushed it open and they entered a spacious sitting room, richly decorated as if they were back in Malfoy Manor. 'Some believe this is a temporary residence, but I have made sure these rooms are as comfortable as possible…'

The room held a large fireplace across from the door. A beautiful Louis XIV style sofa, chair, table and divan sat in front of it, all done in royal blue. The wall tapestry held ornate designs, featuring nature scenes (probably to make up for lack of windows). Danny recognised side tables, bookshelves and several ornaments and knick-knacks from Malfoy Manor. There were two doors, one to the left and one to the right.

'Would you like to take a shower? Or bath?'

The simplicity of his basement became very apparent to Danny. This unreal room was, in fact, real. It was not a drug-induced hallucination-

'Draco?' Danny jerked, turning towards his father, yet taking a step back at the same time.

'Danny,' he whispered.

'What?' Lucius' eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

'Danny. My name's Danny. It's just Danny. Plain-old Danny. Danny Jacobson, actually. Perfectly ordinary name. Adam calls me Danny-boy sometimes-' Adam. Where was he? What if he found out? Oh, dear, Danny would be in so much trouble if they found out what he was.

Lucius was looking very disturbed. Of course he was! Danny was his son. He wasn't supposed to have a mugglish name.

Danny's breathing became laboured. The conflicting emotions were getting to be too much for his frail body. On the one hand the boy wanted to rejoice in the fact that his father was not in prison, but on the other hand he was terrified how his father would react when he heard the whole story. A third hand lurked in the background, holding out retribution from the group, neutralization, and then, execution.

'Draco,' Lucius whispered, reaching out. Danny stepped back again.

'Please, don't use that name,' Danny begged, shaking his head.

'But it is your name,' Lucius insisted. Danny fidgeted, pulling at his t-shirt and jeans. His hands slipped over his pocket, feeling a small cylinder shape-

Suddenly it all became so clear. The need surged within him with such force Danny almost whimpered. He needed to go back to not caring. It had all been so blissfully simple just a few hours ago. He turned away, digging into his pocket for the syringe.

'I need my medicine,' he muttered.

'Are you sick? Let me call Severus. His potions are much better than any muggle-'

'No, I need it now. No time,' Danny cut his father off. He shuffled over to a candelabra standing inside a small shelf built into the wall itself. He could easily see his veins; they protruded so much he could probably find them in the dark.

He tried to control his breathing as he bit off the cap of the syringe.

'Draco, what is that? What are you doing?'

He found the vein and held his breath, trying to keep his hand steady.

'Draco!' He punctured the vein and pressed down just as Lucius' hand came down on his shoulder and spun him around. He was far too late. Danny tilted his head back as he pulled the syringe out and let it drop. A smile slowly graced his face.

'I needed gravy,' he said. 'Gravity, so good. No one can fight it. Who would want to?' As his son fell forward, Lucius caught the thin body easily, but strangely enough the body grew heavier and heavier...

'Severus!' Lucius yelled. 'Help me!' He had to lower his son to the floor; it was as if a force was dragging him there. This had to be magic, but in a muggle drug? Draco smiled lazily up at his father.

'Newton is Law. Gravity is the opiate of the masses. Don't fight it. Don't… ever… break it,' his voice trailed off as his eyes closed and he fell unconscious, into his dreams.

Lucius quickly shot off a Patronus to get help and then kneeled beside his son, holding the small face between his hands. How was it Draco was still so small, if not smaller than when last they had seen each other? Seeing his son emaciated, filthy and with obvious mental problems, was something Lucius never imagined he would have to deal with. He felt a sob rise up in his throat. For so long he had tried to mourn for his son and focus on the present, but he had always held out hope that Draco was out there somewhere and now this… If there was one thing on this earth Lucius Malfoy cared about, it was his son.

Severus arrived moments later, rushing to Draco's side and using his wand to check him over.

'Potter told me, but I didn't believe it,' he muttered. 'What happened?'

'He injected himself with something,' Lucius said, trying to keep his voice steady. By the glance Severus shot him he knew he had failed. He picked up the syringe. 'This white stuff. A drug. Merlin, my son's a drug addict.'

'We do not know what he is,' Severus warned. He cast several diagnostic spells. 'Hmmm, I can't determine what is keeping him unconscious. This is something completely unknown to me. Get him to bed.' Lucius tried to lift him, but the body was too heavy so he used a levitation spell to get him to the bed. It was as richly decorated as the sitting room, but done in mostly earth tones and in a slightly more contemporary wizard style.

Lucius laid his son very carefully on the bed. He felt helpless and that was one thing he did _not_ like.

'What can we do?' he asked the Potions Master, not taking his eyes off his son.

'A purifying potion could be an option, but perhaps it would be better to just let him sleep it off…'

'No, there's some sort of drug in his system. I want it out.' Severus nodded and summoned a house elf, one of many who had joined them from Hogwarts, and asked it to bring the required potion. Once obtained, Severus spelled it into Draco's stomach.

'It will take time to work in any case.' Lucius nodded and pulled up a chair, sitting down with a hand over his son's much smaller one.

'Thank you,' he said in a clear dismissal. Severus took one last glance at his godson and left without another word.

'Draco,' Lucius whispered, staring at his son's pale and drawn face. 'What have you done?'


	4. A Green Ribbon

Hey, sorry for the delay, but I've been living "in French" to prepare for my exams. The last is tomorrow and then I can go back to writing lots of fanfics! Yay! :D :D

Beta: A huge thanks to Hidden Lily

-:-

_A Green Ribbon _

The room was well lit by a daylight spell, causing light to shine off the walls themselves so as to mimic daylight. Lucius still sat in the chair beside the bed, his head down, his hand still clutching his son's.

Draco's head turned and he mumbled something unintelligible. Slowly, he blinked open his eyes. Lucius was brought to attention at once.

'Draco?' He asked in a hopeful tone.

'Father?' Draco answered gruffly, squinting up at the man. 'It was real?'

'Yes, son, everything was real. You're here with us now,' Lucius reassured. Draco glanced about the room quickly, verifying the statement.

'Oh,' Draco said, sounding lost. He closed his eyes again, a single tear escaping. Lucius leaned forward, his brows furrowing with worry.

'Draco? … Shall I not call you that?'

'Of course,' Draco gasped out, clearly resisting the urge to cry. 'It's my name. I was just- I was worried they would find me, but if they did find me here my name would be the least of my problems, wouldn't it? God, I was so… insane-'

'You were severely malnourished,' Lucius interrupted. 'And with the ordeal you went through- I daresay having Potter land in your life again would be a shock to anybody- you were clearly confused, and the drug-'

'I'm sorry,' Draco blurted, his face turned away. 'I just wanted- I'm sorry.'

'Draco, please,' Lucius said, reaching out and cupping his son's cheek, silently asking Draco to look at him, which he slowly did. 'All that matters is that you are here. I don't care what you did in the muggle world. It was for survival-'

'No, it wasn't!' Draco confessed, more tears starting to flow. 'I ran away long before the re- the muggles found out. I just gave up. I broke my own wand.' He tried turning away, but Lucius kept him in place.

'Tell me, talk to me,' Lucius insisted, knowing his son needed to confess everything otherwise he would never heal.

'You must be so ashamed of me,' Draco gulped, hiccupping slightly. 'But after they locked you away everything was so _hard_,' he explained. 'You always said I needed to turn any situation to our advantage, to always manipulate the situation, but I didn't know what to do, where to even start! People were spitting on me in the street. They wanted me in Azkaban too. I thought everything would be better if I just went away…'

'Potter told me you disappeared about six months after You-Know-Who's death.' Draco nodded mutely. 'Then I am proud of you, for surviving four years in the muggle world-'

'No, please,' Draco finally freed himself and tired rolling away, but Lucius was quicker and grabbed his son's shoulders. 'I didn't survive! I did disgusting things! Drugs- I- God- I stole,' Draco was sobbing his confessions, unable to stop now the gates had opened. 'I stole food, money. I sold drugs to others. I-' He closed his eyes, not wanting to see the disgust in his father's eyes. 'The last year I was so broke I had to- Adam gave me food and drugs in exchange for-' But he couldn't say that, not to his father. He didn't see the tears in his father's eyes.

'Son,' he sighed, cursing every god imaginable for putting his boy through all that. 'Do not be ashamed of something the situation forced on you.'

'I wasn't forced,' Draco hiccupped. 'Adam-'

'Who is this Adam?'

'The leader of the group most people in my neighbourhood are in.'

'Did he hurt you?' Draco shook his head. Adam had not hurt him, personally. 'Circumstances have forced people into prostitution since the beginning of human kind. It is simply how the world works. You are my son and I shall never be ashamed of you. I have learned many lessons these past years, both in prison and since I was freed. One of my biggest regrets, that I have often thought of, is that I didn't tell you how much I love you, and that nothing you or anyone does can change that fact.' Draco was still shaking with silent crying, but when Lucius finished his speech he opened his eyes and looked up at his father.

Lucius smiled sadly and pulled his son into a hug. He never wanted to let his boy go. A miracle had happened. He had fled prison only to find his wife dead and his son presumed so, and now he had regained the thing most precious to him.

Draco clutched his father tightly, sobbing as he allowed himself to take the first step back into his world, their world. God, how he had missed it.

Slowly, his father pulled away, wiping the tears off his son's face. He was so small.

'Let me go get you some breakfast,' Lucius said, rising. 'The house elves are only for emergencies and usually service the families here. Why don't you take a shower in the mean time? The bathroom is through there,' he gestured towards a door to the right of the bed and left.

XXX

Adam threw a glass at the wall and the collective flinched. People watched him pace back and forth, walking the length of his almost completely destroyed suite.

'I want them found!' he growled at his most devoted members.

'We have no idea where to even start looking,' Carl, Adam's second-in-command, said. 'All of the pure-wart places in Britain have been washed out, as far as we know.' There was a murmur of agreement from the group.

'Then they're hiding in a human area,' Adam insisted. He paced, giving the occasional grunt as he thought about what to do. 'If only I could contact the one who gave us the tip about the operation where we got Potter,' he murmured. '…Danny…'

'Sure gonna miss that tight piece of arse,' one of the men whispered to the man sitting beside him, who smirked in response. Unfortunately, he was overheard.

'What was that?!' Adam demanded, his eyes glaring at the man.

'Nothing,' the man insisted.

'You said something about arse,' Adam said suspiciously.

'Come on,' one of the few women in the group said with a roll of her eyes. 'You must have known.'

'Known what?' Adam asked tersely, hating being in the dark about anything.

'That they fucked him,' she said. Adam's eyes widened and the men all glared at the women. She smirked in response.

Adam strode over to the man who had made the original comment, pulled out his gun and aimed it at the man's head. He was twice Adam's size with a shaven head. 'What did you say?'

'It's not my fault the slut practically threw himself at us!'

'What!?'

'He didn't!' One of the other men blurted, causing the rest of the guilty party to turn their glares on him for spilling the beans. 'They told him you gave him to them, as a reward. They'd fuck him whenever he came around and you were out.' Adam's eyes blazed with rage and it seemed for a moment that he would actually kill the man. Instead, however, he took a deep breath, blinked slowly and lowered his gun. A sigh of relief went through all present.

Their leader turned and headed for the door, slamming it behind him.

Two floors down Adam found one of the "holding cells" or empty hotel rooms they used to hold warts for information. The guard stepped aside without a word and Adam went inside. There were three warts bound hands and feet, with a rope around their necks tied to the radiator. They huddled backwards as far as they could into the wall. Two of them were young women, clearly badly beaten and abused. The third was an older man with blood in his greying hair, wearing ripped and bloodied robes.

Adam went right up to the middle wart, one of the women, and pointed his gun.

'No! Please!' the other woman cried; clearly, they knew each other. The woman in question simply whimpered and closed her eyes.

'What did we ever do to you?' the man asked angrily, struggling against his bonds. When Adam didn't do anything for a long moment the woman opened her eyes. He stared at her, his face oddly blank, yet she could see the hatred there.

'I release you from your unnatural state,' he whispered and fired a bullet right through her head.

When he came out of the room, Adam took a deep breath and smiled to himself, feeling much calmer. Just then a young recruit came running up the corridor.

'Sir, its an owl, sir, in the lobby. It has the green ribbon, just like before, so we didn't shoot it,' he explained.

'Good,' Adam said, his smile widening, 'very good.'

XXX

Draco remained in the shower for a long time, leaning his head against the beautiful tiles with swirling green patterns. He concentrated on the hot, pounding water, letting it wash away his past. As the seconds trickled along with the water, he thought he could actually feel the last remnants of the drug leave his system. He hoped everything about the last four years went with them, but of course it wouldn't be quite that easy.

He was tired, but tried to feel hopeful, despite the fact that it was an emotion that went against his core character. His father hadn't been disgusted with his past and thrown him out, yet, at least. Maybe, just maybe, things could go back to the way they were before. It seemed like a lifetime ago, but maybe it wasn't completely lost to him.

He turned the shower off and stepped out. The bathroom resembled one from Malfoy Manor. It was an amazing feat of magic and Draco wondered how long it had taken, and how many had worked on it.

He saw a pile of fluffy white towels and dried off quickly. He also noticed a deep green, silken dress robe and decided rather impulsively to borrow it. His father had never denied him anything when he was young, and he felt certain the man wouldn't mind his son borrowing something so simple. Despite this, the last four years had conditioned Draco into thinking that most people, if not all, did not like to share and never gave anything for nothing.

When he finally returned to the bedroom it was empty, but the door to the sitting room was open so he cautiously approached it.

Lucius sat on the sofa reading a book. There was a breakfast tray on the table and the fire was burning brightly. Draco relaxed greatly when Lucius looked up and gave a small smile, beckoning his son towards him.

'Come sit and eat,' he ordered and Draco sat down as close as he dared, wanting to be near his father. The food made his stomach growl loudly and he blushed slightly when Lucius chuckled. 'Make sure you drink these potions first. They are for you stomach, bones and muscles,' he listed off as he pointed to the different vials on the tray. Draco dutifully drank them down and then was finally allowed to eat.

He closed his eyes in pleasure as he tasted the first bite of poached egg. He practically bathed his toast in marmalade and took huge gulps of pumpkin juice; he hadn't even realized he missed it.

It was by chance that he opened his eyes and caught his father's. The man was looking at him with a mix of bemusement and a touch of unexplained sadness. Draco swallowed the bite in his mouth hurriedly, feeling the blush return. Jesus- No, he meant Merlin of course, he had apparently completely lost his manners.

'Forgive me-' he began, but Lucius cut him off.

'Nothing to be sorry about,' he said severely. 'You are simply hungry… when was the last time you ate properly?' Draco swallowed, though there was nothing in his mouth, and thought. Lucius looked increasingly worried the longer he took.

'I guess the last meal was half a burger… the day before yesterday.'

'A burger?' Lucius sighed and put his arm around his son. 'I am so sorry, my son, the thought that you have been practically starving is abhorrent to me, and it is my fault.'

'What? No, it was my fault, all of it,' Draco insisted.

'It was my own actions that put me in Azkaban. I left you, remember?'

'But I left the wizarding world. I gave up caring about anything, even myself,' Draco whispered, turning away. He felt his father stroke his hair and sighed, unable to keep himself from leaning into the touch.

'Let us move forward,' Lucius suggested. 'Eat, grow strong, and heal.'

Draco nodded. This time, he planned to make his father proud.


	5. Patient Zero

Hello all! I've not forgotten my writing, but there is just so much to do here!

Beta: A huge thanks to Hidden Lily

-:-

_Patient Zero_

When breakfast was finished Lucius led him back into the bedroom and found some clothes in the armoire that he shrunk to fit his son. Wearing robes again felt distinctly foreign, and Draco couldn't help but stroke the soft fabric. He stared at himself in the mirror. The change was surprising. His hair was clean and combed, though it hung to past his chin. His clothes, well of course dark green robes were very different from dirty jeans and t-shirts. Even his skin seemed to shine with life again. He was still much too thin, but hopefully that would change with time.

'Much better,' his father said approvingly from behind him. Draco tried to smile and found it returned. 'Come, I'm sure everyone would like to see you.' His smile left him and was replaced with a stone in the pit of his stomach. Lucius either didn't notice or ignored it, leading his son out of the room with a firm hand on the small of his back. They descended many stairs until they came to a large room – a kitchen. It was long, with a wide table and chairs filling most of the space. At the end the kitchen looked well-used; in fact, it was being used just at that very moment.

Molly Weasley was cooking up a storm, but seemed perfectly at ease. The table end closest to her was filled with several people: Potter, at least four Weasleys, Granger, Lupin and Severus. They sat drinking and talking animatedly; obviously waiting for brunch or lunch- Draco had no idea what time it was.

They all stopped talking, and cooking, when Lucius cleared his throat loudly. All eyes turned to them and Draco felt heat crawling up his collar. His father led him forward with a hand on his shoulder. What must all these people think of him? How much had Potter told him? What about his stupidity last night with the gravy?

Severus rose from his chair as they approached and he put his hand on Draco's other shoulder, looking into his godson's eyes.

'You look much better,' he commented, doing a few simple scans just in case. Draco only nodded. 'The drug is completely out of your system,' the man announced. So, they did all know. 'Welcome back.'

'Thanks,' Draco murmured.

'Yes, welcome back, indeed,' Molly Weasley said, hurrying over and surprising Draco with a hug. 'Have you eaten?'

'Eh-'

'Well, I'm sure you could use some more food in any case, you're skin and bones!' She dragged him over to a chair – Severus' recently vacated one – and pushed him down. Draco glanced at his father pleadingly, but he only smirked back. Severus sat beside him, and Lucius at the end. On his right was Potter of all people! Then Ronald, the father Weasley at the end, then the twins, Granger and Lupin across from them.

'You do look a lot better,' Potter commented. Draco glanced at him; he was smiling softly.

'Thanks,' Draco muttered, deciding to keep his eyes on the table.

'Welcome back,' Lupin commented, 'but where have you been all this time, if I may ask?'

'In the muggle world,' Lucius answered, thankfully. Draco didn't think he could find his voice. He remembered well some nasty comments from one or two Weasleys after the war. They were probably not very happy to see him alive. 'We'll leave it at that.' No one argued with this pronouncement, until…

'But you've been in the muggle world, all this time?' Granger asked, sounding interested. Draco nodded. 'So, you're aware of all that's happened?' Draco raised his head and found curious eyes staring at him.

'Well, of course,' he said uncertainly.

'Maybe you could tell us something we don't know,' Granger continued. 'It's hard to get muggle news here. Maybe seeing it from their perspective will give us some clues…' Draco blinked several times. The bizarreness of having Granger ask him for the muggle perspective was not lost on him. He didn't know where to begin. 'Please, tell us what you know about how they found out.'

'You don't know?' Draco blurted, shocked.

'Well, we have ideas, but no confirmation. There's a virtual wall between out worlds now, except for those who manage to hide successfully, but they don't like to keep in contact with us, for obvious reason…'

'You don't have to, son,' Lucius cut in with a glare at the young woman. 'I don't think forcing him to relive it all is going to help anyone.'

'It's alright,' Draco almost whispered. All eyes were on him. He cleared his throat. 'I can tell you about the news I've heard.' Granger nodded in encouragement and Draco thought back to the beginning of it all.

'I don't know how much truth there is in it, but this is the story of y-…our discovery as I heard it. It all started with a research expedition into plants in the Amazon. Something was brought back, but then inexplicably one of the researchers got really sick, but he hadn't ingested it. They were afraid whatever it was would get out into the general population so they quarantined the person straight away. Strange things started happening, magical things, the person – patient zero – started going insane, confessing everything about our world. They later learned that the plant's pollen was only poisonous to magical people and makes our magic go all crazy...'

'Yes, but Severus created a very simple charm to counteract its effect on us-'

'You created it?' Draco asked, surprised once again. Severus only nodded grimly.

'We thought we were safe…' Granger continued, a note of sadness in her voice, 'until they started discovering so much more about us.'

'Having patient zero to experiment on certainly helps,' one of the Weasleys muttered.

'Yes, I wonder who it was…' Everyone paused a moment to reflect on this magical person, a witch or wizard working with muggles, and then horribly betrayed, locked up like an animal.

'Go on,' Potter urged him.

'Right,' Draco sighed. 'They used the plant to make the neutralizing drug, and the patient to test new technology on. At first they were just curious, I think, but when word leaked to the press everything started snowballing. The activist groups, the riots. The government had to do something…'

'So they sided with the wrong side,' someone concluded.

'This plant,' Granger said. 'Is there anything more you can tell us about it?' Draco shook his head; there hadn't been many details about it in the news since people were more interested in the people who got sick from it than anything else.

'I wish we could figure out a way to sway more people to our side,' Potter lamented.

'Society is divided,' Draco said. 'I knew lots of people who didn't want anything to do with this "war on magic," but that doesn't mean they want to do anything about it.' The group seemed to chew on this statement for a while, until Molly came over with a heavenly smelling lunch. Draco found out it was almost two o'clock and everyone had been busy for quite some time. He didn't eat much, but observed the others.

Lucius and Severus seemed to talk mostly among themselves, but Potter was clearly the leader, which was yet another surprising thing. Draco tried sending quick glances at the man, but somehow Potter always knew when someone was looking at him, leaving Draco flustered for most of the meal. No one was openly hostile towards his presence, and Ronald even asked him a few questions. The other Weasleys seemed more accepting after Draco complimented Molly's cooking. He hadn't lost all his manners, thankfully.

'Where are the rest of the families that live here?' Draco asked quietly. Potter turned his eyes on him.

'They keep to themselves. We've divided the prison into collectives like this, with about five kitchens around the place. It's pretty big.'

'And what do you…do?' Potter's lips turned up in a bitter smile.

'We try to rescue the neutralized, but it's hard. The government keeps them in secret locations.' He sighed. 'We also help people escaping to or from other countries. Either they move in here or we help them get to countries who for some reason haven't enacted any of the harsher Newton laws… yet.' Draco mulled this over, frowning at his plate.

'But you don't try to sway public opinion? Or fight back?'

'Fighting back won't help,' Potter stated firmly, and Draco couldn't help but feel convinced by his tone alone. 'They'll just hate and fear us more. We help people. It's the only thing we can do. The muggles won't listen to us.'

They were all finishing their meals, and Lucius rose abruptly, catching Draco's eye.

'Come, son-'

'Actually,' Potter interrupted. 'Could I talk to you in private, Draco?' Potter's eyes seemed to bore into Draco's. They'd been full of fear back at the hotel, but now they were confident, determined, yet pleading.

'Another time, perhaps,' Lucius answered for him. Draco pulled his gaze away from Potter's, rising from his chair.

'With all due respect,' Potter continued tersely, 'I was asking Draco.'

'I-' Draco glanced at his father. The last thing he wanted was to anger the man during this… delicate time. His father came forward and put his heavy hand on Draco's shoulder.

'I'm only concerned for your health, my son,' he said softly. 'If you feel you are up for it…'

'I think I am,' Draco said. Lucius nodded.

'I hope you remember your way back?' He sent a warning glare at Potter and then swept out. Draco watched him go, feeling nervous and hating it. Things had been so much easier when there was nothing to care about- He shut his eyes. Thoughts like that were very dangerous. He felt itchy.

'Draco?' When he opened his eyes Potter was staring at him with concern.

'I'm fine,' he said. Potter gestured for him to follow.

They stopped outside in the hallway. Draco found the place eerie. He had not seen the outside since they entered and the constant torchlight made him think it was night all the time. Potter looked up and down the hall and then at Draco.

'How well do you know the man who captured me?'

'Adam?'

'Yes,' Potter's eyes had a fierce light in them Draco found both fascinating and intimidating. This wasn't the lumbering, saved-by-his-own-luck, Gryffindor teen. This was a full-grown confident man who had fought a war and was now the leader of a resistance group. What had Draco done? Hid in his room during Voldermort's madness, and rotted away in a basement for four years after that. The true worth of his person hit him like a sack of bricks.

'I- I know him pretty well,' he stammered when he realised Potter had been staring at him. He looked away, feeling inexplicably guilty over the fact that he had been sleeping with the man that had almost killed Potter.

'Do you know where he keeps the other witches and wizards he's captured? How long he keeps them before he kills them?'

'I- No, I don't know anything like that,' Draco admitted. 'I wasn't actively in the group… well, not really active anyway. I had to pretend to be interested sometimes. Come to a few meetings. But mostly it was just to get-' He clamped his mouth shut, but Potter's eyes shone with understanding, and pity.

'Drugs.' He stated. 'I understand it must have been hard for you-'

'You don't know anything,' Draco hissed before he could stop himself. 'Don't pity me, Potter! I did it all myself and I know it!'

'But why?' Draco just shrugged and turned away.

'Because I gave up. I'm weak and pathetic.'

'No you're not,' Potter had the audacity to suggest.

'You're a Gryffindor!' Draco blurted incredulously, staring at the man. 'To you everybody else is weak!' He blushed crimson when he realised what he had said, despite the fact that it was completely true. Abruptly, Potter took a step forward, causing Draco to step back into the wall.

'Look, let's just agree that neither of us know much about the other,' he suggested quietly, his eyes intense, insistent, and very green. Draco tired to shake off thoughts that wanted to pop into his head, like the last person who had him pressed up against a wall. The man who would have blown Potter's head off without a second thought.

'I don't know you at all,' Potter continued in a sadder vein. 'Is it weird that I kinda wish there was still some of the old Malfoy in you? I kinda miss the sparks we created-' Potter coughed suddenly. 'Eh- I mean, our fights were rather spectacular. Listen, thanks for answering my questions. I'll see you around. Get well, you hear?' He ended his speech rather awkwardly by giving Draco a friendly light punch to the shoulder, before turning and walking hurriedly away.

Draco remained leaning up against the stone wall for a long moment. The more time he spent in this fortress, the more confused he got. It was all too horribly and incredibly surreal. Just when he thought things couldn't get any more confusing, his father came running down the corridor.

Not once in his entire life had Draco seen his father run.

'There you are, come.' Lucius grabbed Draco's hand and dragged him after him.

'What's happening?' Draco asked, almost stumbling.

'Azkaban is about to be attacked,' Lucius said gruffly, making his way up the stairs to their rooms.


	6. Storm

Beta: Big thanks to Hidden Lily

Note: And thanks to all the reviewers! I'm sorry I haven't answered all of them, but things are really busy here. I'm back in Norway in a couple of days, maybe then I'll find some time.

_Storm _

'What?' Draco asked. Lucius answered by grabbing his arm harshly and dragging him down the corridor. 'What's going on?' His father kept pulling and Draco almost stumbled up the stairs. Once they reached Lucius' quarters the man pushed his son inside.

'Stay here. Do not under any circumstances leave this room before I return,' he ordered, slamming the door. Draco heard locking spells, but knew that the muggles could get through doors despite them.

He was scared. A part of him wanted to go hide under the bed, but another wanted to open the door and demand answers. Without a wand, though, it was doubtful he would be able to break through Lucius' spells.

He went and sat on the sofa, staring into the crackling fire. There was nothing to do but wait. He felt nauseous and grimaced, hugging himself around the stomach.

A sudden deep boom made him jump. He had no idea of the true size of the fortress so he had no way to know how far away the sound had come from. He had not felt any vibrations, but that mattered little to his nerves.

Another boom, this one easily felt through Draco's feet, its vibration terrifying him to the core. He got up and started pacing. Where was his father? What was happening? Draco felt almost faint with worry.

He started scratching his arms as he paced. He felt so terribly itchy, like he was stuck in his skin and it was too tight.

He paced for at least fifteen minutes, but no more booms reached him. He went into the bedroom and lay down, feeling exhausted. Despite his worry he fell asleep, perhaps simply subconsciously shutting down is mind and body.

'Draco, wake up,' someone shook him awake. Draco opened his eyes and sat upright, staring at his father. The man had blood dripping from his temple.

'Are you all right?' Draco asked, reaching up. Lucius jerked back, stepping away from the bed.

'I'm fine.'

'You're bleeding.' Lucius touched his fingertips to the wound. They came away bloody.

'Molly can fix it later. She's good with healing spells.' Draco was too worried to be surprised by his father's compliment to the Weasley matriarch.

'No, now.' Lucius fixed his son with a stern look, but Draco stared back pleadingly. It was a look he had used often in the past to get whatever he desired. It had clearly not lost its charm for Lucius sighed and nodded, gesturing for Draco to follow him.

As they made their way downstairs Draco saw no obvious damage. He wondered how far into the fortress the muggles had gotten. All was quiet now so he hoped they were gone. When the doors to the kitchen opened, however, the noise was slightly overwhelming for Draco.

Everyone in the Order was gathered at the other end of the room, standing and sitting in groups, all in heated discussion. Molly Weasley was going from person to person issuing food, water and occasional healing spells for bruises and cuts.

'Someone betrayed us. This proves the last rescue attempt was betrayed as well,' someone was yelling loudly as the Malfoys moved towards the small crowd.

'We don't know that,' Lupin admonished.

'Then how did they find us?' Severus demanded with a hiss, glaring at the werewolf. 'They just decided to bring their equipment out here in the middle of the North Sea? Someone gave away our coordinates.'

'But who would want to?' Granger asked. Everyone fell silent; their confusion clearly showing it was impossible for someone to want to betray them. Only Severus' eyes glittered and it took a moment for Draco to realise that he was staring at Lucius. Slowly people realised this as well. Again, Lupin tried to be the voice of reason.

'Now, Severus, you can't just-'

'Let him accuse me directly, Lupin,' Lucius cut him off, raising an eyebrow at his old friend.

'Fine,' Severus stated. 'I accuse you of leading the muggles here.'

'But why would he?' Molly asked quietly, though she had obvious doubt in her.

'Because he hates the way I run things.' It wasn't Severus who had spoken, but Potter. He stepped forward, the crowd parting silently for him. He stood as tall as Lucius these days, and his stare was just as level. 'How many times have you insisted we fight back?' Draco stared at his father, who seemed unmovable, but Draco had seen the expression on his father's face before. He was guilty. The truth hit Draco in the gut and he found himself feeling betrayed himself. How could he?

'You may have become slightly more observant, Potter,' Lucius drawled, 'but you are still a pathetically naïve Gryffindor.' The last was spat as an insult. 'You all are! Hiding here as prisoners, filling the place up with riffraff. You needed to see that these muggles will not stop until they have wiped us from the earth. We must fight them-'

'Fighting will only make them hate us more!' Potter cried. 'I refuse to prove them right! They expect us to use our power to kill them, to control them. It's what the militants want so more people will rally to their cause.'

'So? We could win! Instead of living here as criminals.'

'No, we can't win. They are too many,' Granger spoke up. 'You underestimate them, you always have.' Lucius rolled his eyes and scoffed.

'We have the power. We defeated them today-'

'We were in a fortress and clearly had the upper hand!' Potter yelled. 'It was pure luck we didn't lose anyone! What if my air-purifying spell hadn't worked? All our magic could have been rendered useless if we had breathed in that stuff.'

'But it did work, which only proves my point.'

'You put this place at risk, you risked the lives of all the families here, including your own, to prove a point?'

'Some points are important. I thought a Gryffindor would understand that. But I'm done with this argument,' Lucius pronounced and turned to leave. Potter drew his wand, several others following suit.

'I'm afraid I can't let you leave.'

'Are you really stupid enough to think I would remain here a prisoner?' Lucius asked with a mocking eyebrow. 'Draco, come here.' Potter's eyes turned to the blond standing to the side.

Draco glanced up, but quickly averted his eyes back to the stone floor, before squeezing them tight. Feeling as though he was about to throw up, he forced himself to shake his head. He only managed a slight twitch.

'Accio Draco!' He gasped as he was pulled across to his father. Lucius held him against his chest. Draco was facing outwards, towards Potter, whose eyes were hard as steel and whose wand was pointed right at Lucius' head.

'Let him go! He doesn't want to go with you,' Potter growled.

'I have no intention of taking him with me,' Lucius said, his voice filled with an unknown emotion. Draco felt his heart beating so hard he was sure it would burst from his chest. 'I simply want to make sure you don't do anything stupid.'

'Father,' Draco gasped. He felt the arm across his chest tighten. Lucius leaned down to whisper in his ear.

'Stay close to Potter,' he hissed. Potter narrowed his eyes, but did not appear to hear him. 'He will keep you safe at least.' With those parting words, Lucius pushed him forwards roughly. Draco cried out as he stumbled, but Potter stepped forward and caught him. In the confusion, Lucius apparated; the wards inside the fortress having been pulled down during the battle.

'Are you okay?' Potter asked, still holding Draco tightly around the waist. Draco lifted his head and stared at his former childhood nemesis.

'I don't know,' he whispered, stunned over what he had just done. Had he really rejected his father? Everything had happened so fast Draco had hardly been conscious of his decision.

'For what it's worth,' Potter said quietly, his eyes full of worry, 'I'm proud of you.' Draco stepped away at that, not sure he liked Potter speaking to him in that manner. He looked around the room. Potter turned to his companions as well.

'We need to move,' Severus said.

'Not necessarily,' Mr Weasley injected. 'None of the muggles will ever make it back to the mainland. The few that survived are roaming the dungeons and won't last long.'

'They know our coordinates. They will send more.' Mr. Weasley's face fell at the reminder.

'They were clearly military and not some independent group. The government has the resources to keep sending troupes until they take us down.'

'Or they might decide to spare the men and simply use the one weapon they've yet to throw at us,' Potter said grimly.

'No, they wouldn't -' Granger stopped herself, shaking her head in disbelief.

'We're in the middle of the sea. If they want us gone strongly enough, why not use an atomic bomb?'

'Isn't that those really big explosions?' The youngest Weasley asked. 'The one that makes it poisonous to live there afterwards?' Granger nodded sadly.

'We need to move,' Potter agreed. 'But where on earth are we going to go?'

'Another uninhabited island that we can ward ourselves,' Lupin suggested. 'It won't have a ready-built fortress so the families will have to be sent elsewhere, but we can build a place for the Order.' Everyone waited silently as Potter thought this over.

'We need to start immediately,' he pronounced. 'Tell the families to pack necessities. With no word from their people, the muggles will still take a couple of days at most to send more. But we need to move quickly. Hermione, Remus, Severus, find us a place, will you?' The three nodded and left quickly. 'The rest of you help the families first. They need portkeys to the continent or further away.' There was a flurry of activity as people moved to do as he commanded. Potter turned to Draco again and he found himself trapped by those determined eyes.

'Why don't you go upstairs, pack some clothes and things. I'll come and get you when it's time to leave.' Draco nodded and hurried away.

When he reached his father's room he did not pack, but sat down on the bed, staring at the patterns on the carpet.

What had he done? And, more importantly, why? His father had betrayed the Order. Why did Draco care? Because Potter had saved him from his miserable existence, perhaps. One tiny act of heroics and Draco was another lapdog to the Boy Who Lived. This should disgust him, and on some level it did, but mostly he was feeling too terrified to feel or think much at all.

The strangest part of all was perhaps his father's reaction. For one terrifying moment Draco had thought Lucius would kill him, but instead the man had urged him to remain close and be safe. Why? Draco's mind was still Slytherin and he could come to no other obvious conclusion than the fact that Lucius wanted him alive and safe despite his decision. Draco clung to this conclusion, letting this one hope tether him to reality.

This tiny hope, however, was not enough to stop the itch from returning in full force. If only he could fall back to not caring then his mind could shut off and all this horribleness would just disappear.

'I don't want to think anymore,' Draco sobbed into the silence. Maybe his basement had been better, he thought. He had had to pretend he hated his own kind, but Adam had never wanted him directly involved in the war. Things hadn't been so bad with Adam, and he always got what he needed when he felt itchy. He rose, walking mindlessly to the door. Yes, much better. No one to disappoint there. No one to care about him.

XXX

Five hours later many of the families had gotten portkeys off the island. Most of them were going to make it eastwards where laws against magic weren't quite so harsh. Harry was just making sure everything was going quickly and smoothly before deciding it was time to get Draco.

The young man had surprised the hell of out him, and proven once again that Harry really didn't know this Draco at all. That tiny shake of the head had been such a relief to Harry his knees had almost buckled. Maybe it was because Draco had saved him, but he felt a very strong need to protect the former Slytherin. He felt guilt too, obviously, for not seeing that Draco had needed help before he disappeared. He had even said a few nasty things himself.

'Draco?' The living room was empty. The bedroom too and nothing seemed to have been packed at all. Harry checked the bathroom before sprinting down to the kitchen again. Molly was directing things into a box. They floated about her reminiscent of an old Disney classic Harry had once watched through the living room window at the Dursley's.

'Have you seen Draco?' he asked. She shook her head no. He frowned and headed out. He went to another large kitchen where several families were gathered. Hermione and Ron were spelling portkeys.

'Have either of you seen Draco?' Harry asked as he ran up to them.

'No,' Hermione answered, shooting a glance at Ron who shook his head. 'Maybe he's with Severus. He was packing the potions lab.' Potions. Muggle potions… Harry suddenly had a dreadful notion.

'No… he's not there. Fuck, he's outside.'

'What? There's a storm coming in. No one would go outside now,' Hermione exclaimed, but Harry didn't hear her. He ran full out down all the steps to the ground floor. The entrance way was hardly recognisable anymore. The ceiling was gone, as was another floor above it. The doors were completely blasted away, making locking spells completely void. Only ancient magic in the remaining stones held the front of the fortress up at all. Harry could see right to the tip of the island.

The storm had arrived. Wave upon wave crashed against the rocks and the winds howled with greater force than Harry had ever braved. Despite this he ran out into the rain. He shielded his face, the raindrops actually stinging from the force of the wind.

At the very edge lay a skeleton of a body. Harry easily recognised Draco's hair. He lay curled up and shivering, but Harry was thankful for this as it meant Draco was alive. He wasted no time, scooping the frail body into his arms and hurrying back towards the fortress.

'Idiot,' Harry muttered as he made his way up the path as quickly as he could manage. 'How could you do this to me?'

'Harry,' Draco stirred. A wet and ice-cold hand came up and gripped Harry's collar. 'Help me,' Draco pleaded. 'I can't do it like you, even with the storm threatening. Take me home. I need gravy. I can't do this.'

'Yes, you can Draco,' Harry said firmly. He was at the steps and was glad to be sheltered from the wind at last. 'And your home is with me now. You rescued me, remember? Now you'll never be rid of me, and if you ever do anything like this again I'll -' He stopped short when he glanced down at the man in his arms. Draco's face was wet and practically blue. His eyes were desperate and crazy. Harry felt his heart constrict. Damn Lucius for leaving. Not only could he be telling their secrets to muggles, but he had left his son when he was most needed, again. Harry regretted giving the man a second chance for it seemed there was one thing he would never learn.

'Draco,' he said softly. 'I'm going to save you from yourself.' With that he carried his burden all the way to the kitchen. Molly was still there and she gasped when she saw them.

'What on earth happened?' she asked as Harry gently placed Draco on the kitchen table. She quickly spelled his clothes dry and a pillow under his head.

'He went outside. I think he was either trying to kill himself or apparate to the mainland. I need him well enough to be moved to our new location.'

'He needs potions,' Molly said, quickly summoning her Patronus to fetch Snape. 'Oh, poor dear, he's been through so much only to have his father -' She stopped when Draco seemed to come round again. He looked up at Harry, but whether he really saw him was anyone's guess.

'I need…' he began. Harry stepped closer and put his palm on Draco's forehead. There was a definite fever. 'Help.' Harry blinked, then smiled sadly, cupping Draco's delicate face between his hands.

'We will help you,' he told him. 'I will not leave you.' Draco closed his eyes, tears leaking out, and fainted.


	7. Jan Mayen

Note: Thanks to all the nice reviewers!

Beta: Big thanks to Hidden Lily!

-:-

_Chapter 7: Jan Mayen _

When Draco next awoke he was lying on a rather hard and lumpy bed. It had clearly been transfigured or conjured. Had Draco been younger he would have complained at the hasty spellwork, but since the years in a basement he felt completely comfortable, and most importantly warm. He blinked open his eyes, gazing up at a canvas ceiling. Apparently, he was in a tent.

He sat up slowly, looking around. The room was small, filled only with his crude bed, a chest at the foot of said bed, and a little table with a glass of water. The makeshift room was closed off by a curtain the same colour as the rest of the tent: a yellowish grey.

He took the glass of water and gulped it down, but it only made him feel thirstier. He did not feel like getting up to find more, however. He sighed, feeling a headache coming on, and scratched at his arms. Just then, the curtain lifted and Harry ducked his head in.

'Good, you're awake,' he said, coming inside. He pulled his wand and conjured a stool, sitting in front of Draco and staring at him intensely. 'How do you feel?'

'I-… better, I suppose,' Draco ventured, looking away. He swallowed heavily as memories of what he had done came back to him. Had he really run out into a storm like some crazy lunatic?

'Snape is brewing a potion that's suppose to help with withdrawal symptoms, though how more drugs is suppose to help I have no idea. He's the expert, though, and he said going cold turkey could kill you since we don't know the true nature of the drug. We should have done something sooner, but with everything that's been happening-' Harry stopped abruptly when he realised he was babbling. Draco's eyes had returned to him.

'I should apologise,' the blond began.

'What for?' Draco blinked. Harry had sounded absolutely sincere in his question.

'For everything. For running out into the storm. For coming here in the first place. For my father-'

'That's nothing to apologise for!' Harry declared hotly, his eyes blazing for a second before he got control of his emotions. He looked sad suddenly. 'Coming here was the right thing to do and you can't apologise for your father because that's all on him. As for running out into a storm … well, I wanted to give you a good lecture à la Hermione, but it wasn't your fault either. You were- are suffering from withdrawal symptoms.'

Draco found himself blinking owlishly once again. How could Harry simply dismiss everything just like that? Draco could admit he had never really understood the Boy Who Lived, but this was mind-boggling to the extreme.

'Listen,' Harry said, leaning forward and placing a hand over Draco's. 'All you have to do is promise to get better, all right? If I ever find you like that again I don't know what I'll do.'

'Why do you care?' Draco asked before he could stop himself. He closed his eyes; he figured he would not like the answer.

'Because you didn't deserve everything that happened to you after the war,' Harry explained softly, causing Draco's eyes to snap back open. Harry was looking even sadder now. He was unbelievably cute for some reason - Draco shook his mental self – how could a grown man, rather muscular and fairly tall, be remotely cute? Adam had approximately the same build, but he had _never_ been cute. This kicked puppy version of Harry, however, was, for lack of a better word, cute, even if what he was saying was deadly serious.

'You saved me Draco,' Harry continued and did not give him the chance to refute that statement. 'You could have let Adam kill me, but you didn't. That means I owe you my life, but more than that-' Harry looked up and their eyes met. 'You are worth saving.' Draco swallowed, feeling very parched indeed, and looked away. It had been so long since anybody had considered him worth anything. He wasn't, he told himself; he was a coward, a traitor, a loser, a drug addict and a slut according to anyone who knew him. He started scratching at his arms again.

'Hey, don't do that,' Harry admonished, catching hold of Draco's arms. 'I'm going to see if Snape is finished with that potion. Please try to … just don't do anything drastic, okay?' Harry waited until Draco looked at him before he continued. 'Do you need anything?'

Need? Draco needed to wake up from this insane dream.

'Water,' he croaked. Harry immediately pulled his wand and filled the glass. Draco gulped it down and held it out. Another glass and he thought he was a little less thirsty. He clutched his head; his headache had only gotten worse.

'Does your head hurt?' Draco only nodded. 'Just hang on, I'll get Snape.' Harry hurried from the room and Draco flopped back down on the bed. He felt horrible, he realised. Add Harry's declaration and he felt like the whole world was spinning.

'Draco,' a dark voice commanded his attention. He forced his eyes open and saw Severus hovering over him. 'Drink this.' A hand came around his neck and a vial was held to his lips. He swallowed it all down, feeling it prickling down his throat and closed his eyes when he was released. 'Give it a few moments to take effect.'

'How long?' Harry was there too, apparently, and he sounded anxious.

'Patience,' Snape ordered. Draco heard Harry huff. 'With an unknown drug as this, we cannot be absolutely sure of anything.'

Draco felt a sensation, something he couldn't quite describe, but it spread from his stomach and out to his extremities. The itching, the headache, the slight nausea and the painful emptiness drained away. Not completely, but certainly down to a manageable level. He sighed and opened his eyes.

'Did it work?' Harry asked anxiously.

'Yes,' Draco breathed. 'I feel much better.'

'Good,' Severus declared. 'Tell me at once when the potion starts to wear off. You shall take smaller and smaller doses until you can manage without it. You will also continue to take several other potions to help your body take up nutrients, build muscle and strengthen your bones.'

'You can't possibly waste so many ingredients on me,' Draco gasped, trying to remember the ingredient lists for some of the potions Severus mentioned. It has been a long time since he had ever thought about the subject he had once loved.

'We can and we will, because it will not be a waste,' Severus said, his tone making it sound like a warning. Behind him Harry nodded. Draco felt all the air leave him, and he stared up at the pair helplessly. 'My godson,' Severus said quietly, bending down to look at him closely. 'Please, remember that I care about you,' he whispered. Draco nodded, swallowing back the lump in his throat. 'You will do this?' He nodded again. 'Promise me.'

'I promise,' Draco gasped, feeling warmth spread through him, without a potion this time. Severus studied him for another moment and then nodded in satisfaction.

'Good.' He turned, gave Harry a look Draco could not see, and swept out of the small room. Harry sat down on the stool that still stood by Draco's bed. He gave the patient a smile.

'See, told you,' he said smugly.

'Told me what?'

'That you were worth saving.' Draco saw the sincerity, hope and pleasure in Harry and marvelled at the lack of subterfuge this man had. Maybe if Draco had paid more attention and less time trying to get a negative reaction from Harry, things might have gone very differently. To distract himself from such thoughts, Draco found himself asking:

'Where are we?'

'In a tent,' Harry replied with a grin, then continued, 'on the island of Jan Mayen. Ever heard of it?'

'Vaguely,' Draco said, casting his mind back to geography lessons as a child. 'An island in the Artic Sea and part of the kingdom of Norway, if I'm not mistaken?'

'Uh, yes, you're absolutely right,' Harry confirmed, sounding stunned. 'I didn't know you were _that_ smart.' Draco raised an eyebrow. 'I mean-' Harry shrugged sheepishly. 'I thought the teachers favoured you because of your father … '

'Knowledge of an island hardly makes me "that smart",' Draco said neutrally. 'But I earned my grades fairly despite popular rumour, though I'll concede the Quidditch position,' he murmured, looking away stiffly.

'What?!' Harry exclaimed. 'But you're good at Quidditch. I mean, the brooms certainly helped, but Slytherin would have been mad not to pick you as seeker.' Draco's head whipped back and he felt his neck crack.

'But I always lost to you,' he exclaimed incredulously.

'Well, yeah,' Harry looked sheepish again. 'But you always gave me the hardest challenge.' Draco found himself smiling at that, and Harry smiled back, then the man laughed and Draco felt his insides take a summersault. Harry's laugh was deeper than last he had heard it at Hogwarts, but it felt lighter than ever since it was a laugh with him and not at him. 'I guess we all had our prejudices back then. That's why I want us to start over.'

'I want that too,' Draco said softly, hoping he wouldn't regret admitting that. Harry's smile made it worth it, he concluded.

'Good.'

'So, the island?'

'Oh, yeah, well Hermione found it, though she had a hell of a time convincing Snape it was the best idea to come here. We've set up tents on the northern most part, on the far side of a volcano. It's active, but we've set up spells to monitor it. The only muggles-'

'There are muggles here?!' Draco exclaimed, feeling panic rise like a stinging hex in his throat.

'Don't worry,' Harry soothed. 'They are on the other side of the island and it's less than twenty people most of the time. I think it's around thirty-five now. There's only a radio and meteorological station here, all Norwegians, and some military personnel. Sealers visit sometimes, Hermione found out, but otherwise the island has nothing to offer anyone. It's perfect actually, since the British government can't search for us here - it's really far north compared to Azkaban - but we'll make island-hops when we apparate. And the best thing is that the Norwegian government isn't as active in their search for magical people. They have the laws, but the magical community is so small they don't really care to spare the resources to flush them out.'

Draco considered this and agreed with Harry that it was an ideal place, except for the location, as it was very far north. It would mean cold winters in total darkness and bad weather. Harry told him it was foggy most of the time, with storms in between. The volcano, Beerenberg, hadn't erupted since 1985, but you never knew when it could decide to re-awaken. The ground was hard as ice with only bits of moss here and there. It was also partly covered by a glacier. The only settlement was Olonkin City, but it was to the south. All in all a most inhospitable place, but it would have to do.

'Everyone is helping make more permanent housing. We'll make basic rock buildings and then put as much wizard-space into them we can manage. The muggles don't usually venture to this side of the island, but we'll have to ward them heavily in case we're spotted from the sea.'

'The fog certainly plays to our advantage,' Draco remarked, feeling better as he focused on the conversation.

'Yeah, definitely,' Harry agreed.

'What about food?'

'We need to go to the mainland for that. Muggle money is easy to copy using magic, so we'll pretend to be tourists on camping trips, visiting different places in Norway, Iceland and Greenland every time we need supplies.'

'Copying money? I didn't think you were the type to condone that.'

'Desperate times calls for desperate measures,' Harry said grimly and Draco's face fell at that. In his younger days Draco would not have thought twice about tricking muggles or technically stealing from them, but seeing Harry make that face made him feel such guilt, even though he wasn't forcing Harry to do anything.

'Hey, don't worry about it,' Harry said. 'We'll pay it back, someday.' Harry sounded so sure, like he almost always did, and Draco could do nothing but agree.


	8. Plans

Hello all. Chapter 9 is proving very difficult, and I therefore have decided to issue a minor cliffhanger warning for this chapter just in case it takes me longer than usual to get the next chapter finished.

Big thanks to my beta Hidden Lily and thank you to the reviewers for your continued encouragement :D

-:-

_Chapter 8: Plans _

Draco awoke slowly next time, seeing light shining through the flimsy canvas. He reached for the side table and found the potion waiting for him, as Severus had informed him of last night. He drank the full dose, sighing in relief when he immediately felt better. He lay quietly for a moment, marvelling at the situation he now found himself in.

Harry Potter was just … ridiculously amazing. A part of Draco hated to admit it, for it made him seem like a delusional fan. But the truth was staring him straight in the face: Harry had saved him, twice, and he appeared stubborn enough to follow through with the whole process. For the first time since his life had been turned inside out, he felt real hope that maybe things would be okay. This was a very alien feeling to him, and he was a little scared for hoping meant caring about the outcome, and he wasn't used to caring anymore. Harry dragged it out of him, he supposed.

The curtain parted and Harry stuck his head in, smiling when he saw Draco was awake.

'Morning,' he said as he came in, 'sleep well?'

'Yes,' Draco said, a little surprise in his voice.

'Good, want to come out and see?' Draco grew curious by Harry's infectious smile and got up. He followed the young hero outside and squinted into the light. The wind was strong, but the sky was pretty clear. Draco frowned at the barren landscape. He didn't much like the look of the sea, either, even though it was a rather pretty blue. To their right loomed the volcano and Draco's frown deepened. It didn't look much like a volcano on the outside, with ice covering most of it, but that hardly prevented it from erupting.

'What do you think?' Draco's eyes snapped to where Harry was gesturing and his eyebrows rose to his hairline. A rectangular shaped building made entirely of roughly cut stone was leaning into the mountainside. It looked ready to collapse. It had no windows, which Draco lamented; he had hated the artificial light of Azkaban.

'It's…,' Draco was stumped, but he really didn't want to offend Harry, so he forced out a, 'nice,' then closed his eyes briefly in mortification. Harry snorted loudly.

'Hardly, but it's the insides that count,' he said brightly and headed for the small door in the centre of the building. It was the only wooden thing and Draco could tell it had been conjured. Despite his less-than-impressive height, Draco had to duck to get inside.

He entered into a surprisingly large kitchen, complete with stove and fireplace, along with a wide basin sat on a rock ledge protruding from the mountain. In the middle stood a heavy table with chairs for all. To Draco's left and right were doors leading to long corridors where four rooms on either side could be found, with a washroom at the very end.

Molly was in the kitchen cooking breakfast and already at home.

'Hello Draco, how are you feeling today?' she asked as she hung a kettle on the fireplace to boil water while she cooked bacon on the wood stove.

'I'm fine,' Draco answered, feeling uneasy with the concern being shown him.

'Come,' Harry said, leading him down one of the corridors. 'Not all the Order are staying here. We had a meeting last night and decided to spread out a little, but … there's still some shortage of space, I mean we could only put in so much wizard space-…' Harry abruptly stopped rambling as they came to a stop outside the second-to-last door. Draco stared at him, the corner of his lips quirking upwards. Harry was being oddly cute again.

'What on earth are you talking about?'

'I- um- I just hope you don't mind sharing a room …,' Harry said and quickly opened the door and stepped inside. Draco followed, his eyes a little wide. The room held two beds with two small tables between them. At the foot of each was a trunk. The beds had a dreadful reddish-orange bedding, but looked soft enough. Draco was long past caring about interior decorating.

'It's cosy,' he said, feeling this comment was a little better.

'We would have made it bigger, and maybe we will eventually, but everyone decided we wanted to conserve time and energy-'

'Of course, it's fine,' Draco assured. 'More than fine, compared to what I've been sleeping on the last few years,' Draco felt heat rising in his collar at the admission. Not that Harry couldn't guess by the state he had found him in ….

Luckily, Harry didn't question him further; he gestured to the beds instead. 'You can take whichever you prefer. You want to wash up a little before breakfast?'

'That would be wonderful,' Draco sighed.

'Then you'll need this,' Harry informed him and dug into the trunk on the right. He came up with a ten inch wand and held it out. 'No running water, so you'll have to conjure and heat it yourself. Think you can manage it?' he asked kindly. Draco swallowed, not moving to take the wand. 'Draco?'

'I'm not sure-'

'You need a wand,' Harry insisted. 'I don't know if this fits you, but believe me that when you really need one, any will do. We got a bunch of them from Ollivander's when more and more people had their wands confiscated by muggles. Here.' Knowing he couldn't refuse, Draco reached out and curved his hand around the magic wood. He felt it, though nothing like his old wand – now long gone - as it went tingling up his arm. He gasped; would he even remember the spells? It felt like another lifetime ago, but it felt undeniably _good_, like coming home after a cold, hard journey.

'Thank you,' he whispered.

'No problem, no problem at all,' Harry whispered back. Draco looked up at him and saw something like understanding in those green orbs. He smiled in unrestrained gratitude and Harry returned it brilliantly. 'Go wash now, but be quick or all the bacon will be gone.' He actually winked rather cheekily and headed out. Draco took a moment to pull himself together and then went to wash up.

XXX

The kitchen was filled with people and Draco focused both on his meal and the interactions he saw. Now that he was slightly more at ease he was surprised by the way Severus and the werewolf spoke quietly to each other. He tried not to think about the fact that the man transformed into a monster every month. Everyone else seemed unconcerned about it, so he could do nothing but accept it.

The Weasleys were a boisterous bunch, but Draco found them quite charming despite himself. After years of living mostly with drug addicts, he felt grateful for their "full-of-life" manners despite current events.

A couple of chairs were empty, but Harry had insisted they couldn't wait, as it was unsure when the missing people would return. The identity of one became clear when the door was pulled open, the wind howling fiercely now, and a man quickly slipped inside.

Kingsley Shacklebolt pulled off a heavy brown cloak, revealing inconspicuous muggle clothing. Harry got up to take the garment and Kingsley nodded with a grateful sigh.

'Come and eat first,' Harry ordered and Draco realised that even the former Minister of Magic now followed The Boy Who Lived. The former Minister only lacked the title due to the fact that he no longer had a government to run.

Kingsley dropped down into a chair and smiled tiredly when Molly placed a full plate in front of him. He dug in and the room simmered quietly around him, all waiting for his report. Draco watched the large man curiously. He didn't know much about him, but Harry seemed perfectly familiar with him. Physically, he certainly seemed like a man you'd want by your side.

'Sweet Merlin, that was good, thanks Molly,' the man proclaimed when he finished, leaning back in his chair to collect himself after the heavy breakfast. Harry leaned forwards by contrast, his eyes on alert. Draco almost shivered; he wasn't sure how he felt about Harry when he was in his "leader"-mode.

'What have you found out?' he asked.

'Apparently, our location was given to the government by one of the vigilante groups. As far as I could deduce, they have no idea how this particular group got the information.' Everyone fell silent as uneasy glances were exchanged, all of them studiously avoiding Draco, who felt sick to his stomach all of a sudden. His father had given away their location, their safety.

'Any other news?' Harry pressed, ignoring the uncomfortable silence.

'The new gas is officially still being tested, but obviously some military personnel has gotten their hands on it early. Once they are absolutely sure it doesn't do any damage to "normal" people …' Kingsley's face darkened considerably and Draco held his breath. 'They plan to put it into mass production. Any civilian will be able to spray someone they suspect of magic. Not to mention the gas bombs they'll start using on suspected hide-outs.'

'Shit,' Harry said as he closed his eyes briefly. 'This will make rescuing people practically impossible.'

'It _will_ make it impossible,' Severus interjected. 'We must abandon all plans-'

'What?! Are you crazy? These plans have been in the works for months. We can't just leave people in prison for the rest of their lives-'

'If it weren't for us there would be dozens more!' Severus countered harshly. 'We've done more than-'

'Our fair share?' Harry supplied, sarcasm dripping. It didn't suit him, Draco thought. 'Tell me, who decides what "our share" is? We use air-purifying charms-'

'And if they manage to make it even more potent?' Severus' eyes glittered darkly. 'So potent you won't even notice you've inhaled it before you try and cast a spell?'

'So far that's not the case. You need a fairly high concentration for it to work,' Kingsley informed them. 'But I wouldn't put it past them – they're smart little buggers. As for your plans, you might want to consider … altering them a little.'

'What do you mean?'

'I mean I've found out where they're keeping patient zero.' Silence met this statement. Draco frowned; he wasn't sure what all the fuss was about.

'Where?' Harry hissed.

'An underground complex on the Isle of Man,' Kingsley revealed. 'My contact gave me information on a very high-ranking military officer. I had a very small window of opportunity, but I found him alone at his golf club … I had to use Legilimency.' Harry frowned, his eyes filled with sympathy. Clearly, Kingsley did not enjoy that particular spell. 'But I think the information I got was worth it.'

'It's always pleasant to see Gryffindors fall from their high morals,' Severus muttered. Harry shot him a glare that would melt the glacier outside. The man did not meet his eyes, but took a sip of his tea instead. Harry turned back to Kingsley.

'Do you know a lot about the complex?'

'Yeah, a good deal and I don't think they'll find out he's been compromised. I was very careful.'

'We can't just waltz in there,' Lupin said quietly. 'This isn't like breaking out some prisoners. This is their prized possession. It's what makes their war possible. There will be magic detection devices all over the place.'

'Actually, they scan the heads of all the people going in,' Kingsley said. 'Their scientists are apparently certain they can tell the difference by looking at their brain.'

'Yeah, Draco said something about that when he de-neutralised me,' Harry murmured, turning to Draco who was sitting on his right side. All eyes followed and Draco felt warm under the scrutiny.

'What are you talking about?' Granger asked.

'I completely forgot to mention it,' Harry said to himself in confusion. 'I guess with all that happened-…' he shook his head to clear it, 'When I was captured they neutralised me. Someone from the government must be supplying them with the drug. Anyway, when Draco came to me he put his hands on my head and … fixed me.' Everyone stared at the blond in question. Draco swallowed. Attention was not something that had been associated with anything good for the last four years.

'Draco?' Severus prompted.

'Um- They're right about the difference in the brain. Muggles have their brains pretty well mapped-'

'Mapped? How can you map a brain?' Ron Weasley asked.

'They know which parts control movement, emotions, memory, all that stuff,' Granger explained. Draco nodded absently, keeping his gaze on the table.

'They now know that there are parts of the brain that control magic. That's what the neutralisation drug is for; it cuts off the connection between that part and the rest. I use a type of Legilimency and a sobering spell to quicken those nerves into functioning again. It's quite simple, actually. I sort of figured it out through trial and error. Adam-' he paused briefly mentioning the name, 'would sometimes have me feed prisoners when they wanted information. I practiced on them.'

'You helped them escape?' Granger asked.

'No,' Draco said, feeling miserable at the admission. 'A couple did because they managed wandless magic, but most of them couldn't. Adam just thought that sometimes the drug wore off quicker. I couldn't help them. If he found out-'

'But you did help them,' Harry cut him off. Draco looked up and met eyes filled with both concern and something Draco couldn't identify. 'You gave them a chance and some of them even managed to escape. Why didn't you mention it before?'

'I was experimenting,' Draco protested weakly, looking away. 'They were my guinea pigs, nothing more.'

'Guinea pigs?' Ronald asked, confused. Granger gestured in a way that clearly said "later."

'Draco,' Severus' voice forced him to look up. His former mentor's eyes were still glittering darkly, but this time there was a sly smile along with them. 'You are very clever indeed to have figured that out by yourself with no wand. I'm very proud of you.' Draco blushed hotly at receiving such high praise from Severus Snape, in front of a room full of witnesses no less! Harry grinned and beamed, slinging an arm around Draco's shoulders and squeezing him in a half-hug.

'Yes, quite extraordinary,' Lupin said. There were nods and murmurs of astonishment all around. Draco wasn't sure any of it was real.

'Hey,' Harry whispered and Draco looked up with wide eyes. 'Breathe,' Harry advised, still grinning. 'The Draco Malfoy I once knew would accept praise as a right. Surely you can accept it when it's due?'

'Thank you,' was the only thing he was capable of murmuring. Harry let go and turned back to the others, and Draco was grateful as attention was diverted away from him again.

'All right, one more question, did you see patient zero's face in the man's mind? Did you perhaps recognise him?'

'… unfortunately, yes,' Kingsley said, all seriousness back as he hesitated. 'I wasn't sure if I should tell you.'

'You mean it's someone we know?' Harry exclaimed. 'Who?'

'You can't let it affect your judgement,' Kingsley warned. 'You can't rush things, promise me.'

'Tell me who it is now!' Harry barked, his eyes blazing. Draco felt slight pity for the man. Magic crackled in the air and Draco gasped, though the others seemed to expect this.

'Calm down, Harry,' one of the Weasleys pleaded. Harry took a breath.

'Tell me,' he ordered again. Kingsley sighed and with deepest sadness finally gave up the name of patient zero:

'It's Neville, Harry.'

-:-


	9. Old glares, new stares

Sorry for the long delay. Thanks to my beta, Hidden Lily, and the reviewers I failed to answer. There may be some odd formatting in this chapter because my spell-check is stuck on Norwegian and it won't stop trying to auto-correct stuff and I can't turn it off.

-:-

Chapter 9: Old glares, new stares.

'It's Neville, Harry.'

The room became absolutely silent with this statement for exactly three seconds. Then many things happened at once. Granger gasped and covered her hand with her mouth, while her Weasley wrapped his arm around her. Similar reactions came from all the women, actually. Severus just closed his eyes and shook his head.

Harry on the other hand, pushed his chair back abruptly and got up, pacing the length of the kitchen. Draco watched him warily.

'Harry-' Kingsley began, but Harry stopped in front of him and pointed at him.

'Don't,' he snapped and resumed pacing. Draco did not like the atmosphere at all. Everyone watched their leader silently for almost five minutes. Finally, Harry stopped.

'We have to rescue him.'

'Why don't we exchange him for yourself?' Severus asked snidely. 'Or better yet just give ourselves over. It'll be much quicker, but the same result!'

'Shut up!' Harry yelled, banging his hand hard on the table and causing Draco to jump and look down.

'Words of wisdom from our esteemed leader,' Severus spat. Harry made a noise of utter frustration at the back of his throat.

'You know we can't let them keep him,' he ground out. 'He's a symbol! If we free him and tell the world what they've been doing-'

'Who will listen? The government? They will simply grab some random person from one of their prisons and continue as if nothing happened,' Severus argued.

'No! The world _will_ listen!' Harry sounded as if he was convincing himself. 'And even if you don't believe it will help, there's another reason we have to get him out.' Draco dared to look up again as Harry sounded calmer.

'Oh? And what is that?'

'It's what we do,' Harry said simply. 'And if Neville is patient zero then he's been the longest held wizard of them all. I'm going to rescue him and if any of you don't want to try, then you can leave this group, no hard feelings.' With that Harry turned and stalked down the corridor to his room, leaving the kitchen in defeated silence. Severus was pursing his lips as if he'd tasted something too sour for him.

'Well,' Lupin said, 'that's that then.' Draco looked around and realised none of them, not even Severus, would be leaving, even if they were about to attempt a rescue far more risky than any of their previous ones. They really followed Harry.

Feeling parched, Draco reached out for the glass of juice in front of him and noticed his hand shaking. Severus didn't miss it either and quickly produced a small bottle.

'Take a sip,' he ordered. Draco obeyed and sighed when he felt better and the shaking stopped. 'You should rest a little,' Severus continued. 'Then perhaps later in the day we can see how well you do with your new wand. Potter did give it to you, I presume?'

'Yes,' Draco answered.

'Good.' He had very mixed feeling about trying out his new wand, but he did feel full and a little tired after the heavy breakfast, so he braved the corridor and his room – their room.

Draco walked as slowly as possible towards the door. Perhaps Harry didn't want to be disturbed? Perhaps he should go back and tell Severus he was ready for some practice right away? Then again, he wasn't sure he was ready. With a deep breath, Draco pushed open the door and poked his head in.

Harry was sitting on his bed, elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. He looked up immediately, his eyes wide and perhaps a little misty. Draco was surprised at the emotion in them. Harry had seemed so strong just a moment ago and here he was ... looking vulnerable.

'You can come in,' Harry said softly. Draco realised he was still standing in the doorway and came in properly.

'Are you all right?' he couldn't help asking. Harry sighed and returned his gaze to the floor.

'I don't know,' he replied sincerely. 'I keep trying to remember where and when I last saw Neville, but ... I just can't remember!' Harry got up, taking the two steps to close the distance between them and stared at Draco helplessly. 'He was one of my closest friends for years and I can't remember!'

'Hush,' Draco said, not really analyzing what he was saying. He placed his hands on Harry's shoulders. 'Sit.' Harry allowed himself to be pushed back to the bed and dropped down, returning to his original position. Draco sat next to him, feeling very much out of his depth, but knowing he had to say or do something to help this man who had done and was still doing so much for him.

Giving comfort was not something he had ever done, at all. But he had been given comfort by his mother, years ago.

'It's not your fault,' he tried. Harry shook his head.

'I just wish I could remember ... he was obviously working with the muggles in the Amazon, but wouldn't he have mentioned it? Maybe I was too distracted when he told me, for he must have told us ... some friend I am.'

'Don't say that,' Draco snapped more harshly than he had intended. Harry looked up at him. 'You're a great friend, but you've been a bit busy since ... well, since you were born I'd wager. Exploring the Amazon is a dangerous job even for wizards. Going with muggles even more so.'

'Are you saying he knew the risks?'

'Well, obviously there were some risks no one could predict, but that's what I mean, no one could have predicted this. It's no ones fault.'

'Yes, it is,' Harry said, his voice dark and unnerving. 'The muggles who decided to experiment on him.'

'Agreed,' Draco whispered.

'I have to get him out of there,' Harry said desperately.

'You will. I know from personal experience that you have a knack for rescuing people.' Draco tried to give a small smile of encouragement. Harry noted it and bemusement lit his eyes.

'What are you talking about? You saved me, remember?' Draco blushed. That was hardly the way he remembered it.

'If it wasn't for you, I'd still be living in a filthy basement, starving half the time and high as a kite the rest.'

'And if it hadn't been for you, I'd be dead,' Harry said simply, smiling softly. Draco looked away awkwardly.

'Whatever,' he muttered. Harry gave a small chuckle and it warmed Draco's heart much more than he would have thought. His blush failed to leave him for some reason.

'Why don't you rest some before we have a go at your magic? I need to start discussing plans with the others,' Harry said, rising from the bed. Draco watched him go to the door.

'Please, listen to Severus and don't do anything too foolhardy,' he blurted suddenly. Harry turned back and gave him an odd look.

'I always listen to Snape. He's my hated voice of reason, always pointing out the things I don't see. Don't worry, we won't do anything without a plan worthy of a Slytherin.' With that Harry left, closing the door softly behind him. Draco sat, numb with shock for a long while, then he smiled, feeling relieved that the pair didn't hate each other as much as it had seemed. Why this should matter so strongly to him, he didn't bother to examine.

He lay down and curled up, falling asleep with a comforting smell surrounding him. Apparently, he had completely forgotten he was sleeping in Harry's bed.

XXX

'Very good,' Severus commented and Draco smiled with pride. After a little rest Severus had taken him outside and shown him another smaller building a few meters off. Inside, the space was divided into a empty storage place they could use for practicing and Severus' potions lab.

'The wand seems to suit you,' Severus commented further. Draco looked down at the wand in his hand and couldn't agree more. He had been pleased beyond imagining when his first complicated spell had managed to burst forth after only a couple of tries. After that it felt like he "got" the wand and it understood him much better. Nowhere near his old wand, but much better than he could have anticipated. It felt good to wield magic with a wand again, and many spells came back after years of lurking in his subconscious.

'A little duel perhaps?' Severus suggested and Draco grinned. He had dueled his mentor many times before. 'I will go easy on you, at least at first.'

'Normally, I would insist otherwise, but this time I won't object,' Draco accepted. He knew even if he could remember the spells, he was far too weak to try anything big.

'It is nice to hear you talk about normalcy,' Severus noted with a small smile. Before Draco could respond Severus had cast the first spell and they were off.

Draco was very proud of his shield spell and it even stood up again Severus' stinging hex. They exchanged unpleasantries for a good fifthteen minutes before Draco held up his hand and silently begged for mercy.

'Wow.' Draco whirled around, making himself dizzy. Harry stood in the doorway, grinning. 'You're already back on top.'

'Hardly,' Severus protested. 'Draco still has much room for improvement.' Harry met Draco's eyes, a sly smile curving his lips and Draco felt his own mouth go dry.

'I don't doubt it.' Draco could not understand why it was so hard for him to speak.

'I must go see to a potion,' Severus said from somewhere behind him. 'I will be back momentarily.' Neither of the young men seemed to notice Severus walking to the door at the back of the room and disappearing inside his lab.

'You really were amazing for someone who hasn't held a wand in four years.'

'Well, Severus always was a good teacher.' Draco frowned when Harry threw his head back and barked a laugh. Afterwards he came towards Draco, saying:

'I guess our definitions of "good teacher" are a little different.'

'But he was-'

'Maybe to you, a fellow Slytherin. Although I have learned better from him after I left school, isn't that ironic?' Harry was a little too close, Draco felt, but he didn't want to step back in case Harry read something into it.

'Yes, that is ironic.' A pregnant pause followed. Draco could not hold the green gaze for long. When he broke eye contact he heard Harry sigh and frowned at the floor. He forced himself to look up again. 'What?'

'Nothing,' Harry said with a small smile. 'I guess a part of me misses the times when you would glare at me and neither of us would ever back down.' Draco was completely taken aback by Harry's statement. Why would he miss that? Didn't he think Draco was a total berk and annoying spoiled prat back then?

'You want me to glare at you?'

'No,' Harry laughed. He shrugged and mumbled something that sounded like "wouldn't mind intense staring of another sort-" but he cut himself off, blushed and made some hasty excuse Draco didn't catch before bolting from the room. Draco blinked after him stupidly. What on Merlin's magical sphere was that? Draco hardly had time to process Harry's bizarre behaviour before Severus returned and resumed their duel.

XXX

By the time dinner rolled around Draco was feeling better than he had in a long time. He smiled to himself as he thought things would only get better as he grew stronger and stronger. He decided right then to eat a lot so as to speed his recovery up as much as possible. He didn't want to remain a wraith-like creature for a second longer.

Dinner was surprisingly subdued. Draco didn't know what to think. Harry glared stubbornly into his meal while Molly kept sending anxious glances at her husband. Severus' glare was directed at Harry's head, while Lupin and the others tried to pretend nothing was wrong. They failed utterly at that, and looked worried. Draco didn't feel like he had the right to ask, so he kept silent.

As the plates were cleared and Harry got up to leave, Severus suddenly hissed:

'You're a foolhardy child still!' Harry paused, but did not look back and continued towards their room without comment. Draco decided to help with the washing up, since he had to do something to earn his keep considering everything these people were doing for him. Molly turned him away, however, and left Draco worried he was never going to be able to repay them. He still owed Adam-

He decided not to think about that and cut his thoughts off. There was nothing to do but brave their room once more.

Harry was propped up in bed reading something. He glanced up briefly when Draco entered, but said nothing. Draco sat down nervously on his bed, studying the man before him and wondering if he should ask. If he used his Slytherin mind, however, he thought perhaps he could guess what dinner had been about.

'You're planning something stupid to rescue Longbottom, aren't you?' he could not keep the accusation out of his voice. Had not Harry promised to listen to Severus? Harry sighed and put his book aside.

'The plan is not stupid, but Snape wants to wait longer, and that _is_ stupid. We need to act now, not wait for a group of people who may still be gone for months.'

'What group?'

'A few Order members are in America trying to recruit and learn how the American wizards are handling things.'

'You must wait for them to return, then.'

'No, we don't know how long-'

'You need all the people you can get for something like this,' Draco reasoned.

'No, we need to sneak in undetected.'

'That's impossible. The brain scan, remember?' Both their voices were rising steadily, but Draco could not keep silent. He would _not_ allow Harry to put himself into danger like this. No, absolutely not!

'Polyjuice,' was Harry's answer to that.

'No one has taken a brain scan while under polyjuice! You have no idea if the brain changes. In fact I highly doubt it!'

'We won't know until we try. It's not a glamour, remember. The potion changes your entire physical body.'

'But you still use magic while polyjuiced as a muggle, so the brain would look the same!' Harry got up with an exasperated sigh and seemed to be about to leave. Draco shot up as well. 'Is that your whole plan?' he asked increduously.

'No, we have several back-up plans,' Harry told him angrily. 'I'm not stupid contrary to popular belief.'

'Well, I see where that belief comes from!' Harry's eyes ignited with fire at Draco's comment and stepped closer. Draco almost backed down, but he couldn't - not with Harry's life at stake. The man took a deep breath and then gritted out his plan.

'Severus wants to use Imperius, but I'm against it. My plan is to find out how a muggle's brain looks and glamour them to trick the machine. We will infiltrate the complex, set off a few bombs to create a diversion, find Neville and get the hell out. Simple, quick and effective.'

'And the magic detection devices?'

'That's what the diversion is for. We split off into two groups-'

'Severus' plan is better.'

'No, it's unreliable-'

'It's safer.'

'I don't care!' Harry shouted. That time Draco did take a step back and cursed himself for it immediately after. Harry's eyes softened when he saw it, though, and he looked guilty. 'I'm sorry. I would never hurt you.'

'I know,' Draco said, his voice strained as he tried to ignore his embarrassement. 'I just ... I don't want you to get caught, Harry. Adam would have killed you, but these people will keep you ... for a very long time ....' Harry closed the space between them once more and placed his hand under Draco's chin. Green eyes met grey.

'And you know that would be worse for me, don't you?' Draco's eyes held the answer. He did know it, because Harry was just that sort of person. 'Why don't we have another meeting and you can be there, give your opinion on everything and we can make sure it's a safe enough plan.'

'It will never be safe enough,' Draco whispered before he could stop himself. Harry smiled sadly.

'For the first time in a long while, I agree, but I have to save Neville, even if I have more things to live for now.' Draco's eyebrows furrowed at that, but Harry just smiled and drew back. 'Come on. I'm sure Severus is dying to have you agree with him.' Harry took Draco's hand and led him out. The hand felt so incredibly warm and strong, Draco never wanted to let go.


	10. Important

Note on this chapter: I have now switched to Open Office and I hope the spell-checking and formatting problems are now dealt with. Finally, free from all things Microsoft (the xbox360 doesn't count ;)

Note 2: Thanks to my quick and brilliant beta Hidden_Lily and to all the readers and reviewers :)

-:-

_Chapter 10: Important_

The kitchen was a sombre place, deathly silent. Draco avoided everyone's eyes – just like everyone else – and twitched when Harry finally cleared his throat.

'I've been thinking.' Draco darted a glance at Severus and saw the man purse his lips. '… and I have decided on a plan. Some of it you have heard already, but I'm going to go through it all, without anyone commenting, and then we can have a discussion.' Harry's voice was clear and calm; Draco admired it.

'All right, Harry,' Granger said quietly. Draco heard the man beside him take a deep breath.

'From the information Kingsley gave us, we know the security is substantial. We know there are heavily armed military personnel there, though the exact number is uncertain. A direct assault could be difficult, but a small group could have just as much difficulty infiltrating undetected. I think we need to do both. A small group, no more than two or three, will try and infiltrate using Polyjuice potion and, well, whatever glamours and such that are needed. They shouldn't be able to detect non-active spells like that. No one's reported they can detect polyjuice. Once inside, I want them to find out as much about Neville's situation as possible and then get a message out to the rest.

'Then, the main assault will begin, in two groups. One will create a significant distraction while the other gets Neville. The infiltrating group will do whatever they can to disable or make the muggle's reaction to the threat problematic. The moment we get Neville out, everyone apparates the hell out.

'You all know you don't have to do this, and I won't think any less of you if you stay behind.'

Draco swallowed as Harry finished his speech. His mind was reeling. Before he could voice his opinion, however, Severus' fist slammed into the table.

'I will say it again, since it appears you have failed to grasp this: the plan is ludicrous!'

'No, it's not, and you know it,' Harry argued. 'It's our best possible chance.'

'Not with the people we have at our disposal. We need to wait for-'

'We don't have time.'

'I hate to say it, Severus,' Remus cut in before the tension rose. 'But this just might be the best plan. I don't think any of us want to leave Neville there for any longer than necessary.'

Harry gave a tight smile in gratitude and abruptly turned his gaze to Draco.

'You're the main reason for repeating this discussion,' he admitted openly and the former Slytherin fought valiantly against his blush. 'What do you think?'

'I think it's far too dangerous,' Draco blurted. He focused on the table when Harry frowned. 'So many things can go wrong. You can't know how advanced their technology is. You have no way of knowing how good their neutralisation gas is-'

'That's why one in every group will continuously perform air-purifying charms,' Harry cut in. Draco absently nodded this information in.

'But the first group will be searched. Will they even be able to bring their wands? I think you need to get more information about the layout from the same method Kingsley had to use-'

'What? More legilimency? No, that's what they expect of us, that's why they fear us-'

'You are already breaking their laws by simply using magic every day, by rescuing people from their prisons. Why do you care how you accomplish this?' Draco lifted his gaze, curiously staring at his wide-eyed saviour. 'They don't. I know they don't. They will believe we are controlling them, torturing them, using them with our magic, forcing them to do unspeakable acts every day.'

'That's exactly why I don't want to prove them right!' Harry declared hotly. Draco flinched, but before Harry could apologise, which Draco could tell he was about to, he continued.

'You aren't. You are getting information about someone _they_ are torturing so that you can free that person who is wrongly imprisoned even by _their_ laws.' Draco felt optimistic as Harry's gaze dropped away, the whole room going dark and contemplative. This meant he was getting through, surely? 'War makes criminals of both sides,' he added quietly, knowing the absolute truth of that statement.

'Merlin,' Harry whispered. Draco felt a stab of guilt at the depressing tone.

'Well done, Draco,' Severus said and Draco had to meet the man's eyes. 'You seem to have gotten through.'

'Don't,' Harry warned, his stare boring through the table still, but surprisingly the room fell silent again. 'All right ... we gather information ... once we have a complete layout we hit it with everything we've got, as soon as possible. Kingsley, can you ...?'

The man looked grave, but he nodded towards Draco. 'He makes a convincing argument, but can you expect less from a Slytherin? I'll try my best. If I can get a list of personnel perhaps Snape would assist, considering-'

'Of course,' Severus agreed immediately.

'Right,' Harry said and Draco could tell the man was calculating how quickly things could get done. 'Once you have the information, I want you-' he indicated Kingsley, Granger, Ron Weasley and the twins, 'To make the biggest distraction possible. 'Snape, Remus and Arthur are with me. Hermione and Arthur, you're on air-purifying duty. We'll discuss more details later.' With that Harry pushed away from the table, leaving Draco nonplussed. Molly wasn't coming, that was logical as she needed to be here to patch up the injuries afterwards. But surely, he could be of some use?

'Wait,' he rose, causing Harry to turn back. 'What about me?'

'No,' was Harry's blunt answer.

'But, if I get enough training in, I'm sure I can be of use-' Why was he arguing to put himself into a dangerous situation? Why did he feel this overwhelming desire to make sure he wasn't left behind?

'No.' With that the man turned and left, leaving the room in silence once again and Draco's mouth opening and closing like a fish. He shook his shock off quickly, replaced it with indignation and hurried after. Harry was already seated on his bed when he reached the bedroom.

'How dare you! I won't be left behind!'

'You're not ready,' Harry said fimly.

'You don't know that yet,' Draco's voice was rising. 'Merlin and Jesus! You're just as arrogant as ever, aren't you! You call that a discussion? Everyone has to do what the Boy Saviour says! Always and forever-' Harry jumped up, fists clenched.

'I WON'T put you in danger!' He yelled. The scene froze. Draco didn't know where to look- didn't know what to think, how to think. In the space of one sentence he had forgotten how his body functioned. Suddenly, arms gripped his shoulders and his head snapped up as Harry shook him hard, once. 'Please, stay here.' Harry's eyes were wide and pleading. He looked truly desperate.

'I-' But Draco could not find the words.

'I don't want you near those kind of muggles ever again. I know your spell-casting will progress quickly. You'll duel me easily in no time at all, I have no doubt. But I can't have you there. I wouldn't be able to concentrate.' Harry stepped even closer, and Draco's mind came to life briefly to evaluate the difference in height. By the way their heads were tilted, their noses were too close for comfort.

'You've become too important to me,' Harry whispered. 'Can you handle that?' Draco tried to find his voice again, and when he did, he could it clear and unwavering.

'Yes,' he said. 'I don't like staying behind, but I like... I like that you want to keep me safe.' It sounded banal even as he said it, but it was the truth. It had been so long since people cared like that. His father cared – unexpectedly – but he had run off. Harry would come back, Draco was sure of it. And if it took him staying behind for Harry to keep his focus- well, he'd just have to grit his teeth.

'You do?' Harry said, hopeful and startled at once.

'Yes,' Draco admitted. 'You're important to me too,' he forced the words out quickly before he lost his nerve. 'That's why I had to say those things-' Harry's strong hands squeezed his shoulders comfortingly.

'I know. Thank you. I needed to hear them, but I couldn't hear them from Snape. Too stubborn for my own good, but you'll help me with that, I'm sure.' Harry smiled tentatively and Draco returned it.

A knock on the door and Draco jerked out of Harry's grasp. They turned as one and Draco tried to keep the scowl off his face.

'Everything all right in here?' Granger poked her head in.

'It's fine,' Harry assured her. Draco wasn't completely sure. He was still a little miffed about staying behind, but his stomach was fluttering rather cliché-like from Harry's intense stare. Then he frowned as he considered the possibility that his feelings were just a result of Harry saving him.

No, he didn't want to believe that, he realised. He wanted to feel something genuine and pure. It was refreshing, life-giving; as if Adam and his disgusting past could be erased if he just gave his whole heart to this- whatever this was – even if Harry never felt anything more than protective of his new friend.

Harry finally closed the door on Granger and turned back to Draco.

'You okay?' he asked.

'Yes, I'm fine.' Or at least, he was better than before, he reasoned.

XXX

It wasn't until Draco woke up early the next morning that the significance of yesterday struck him with such force he felt pain in his chest.

Harry lay snoring next to him. Draco scowled at him. Was he to stay behind because Harry thought him weak? Well, he was certainly going to prove him wrong, even if he wasn't coming on the mission. He was going to get strong again quicker than anyone would anticipate. As he got up quietly, his scowl turned into a soft smile. Even when Harry made him angry, it still turned out for the better, didn't it? It made him try harder. He sighed and shook his head, reaching out to brush some hair out of the tranquil face. He sat down next to the man.

His chest constricted. Merlin, how had his feelings gotten so strong so quickly? They had sprung on him, or had they? He continued to stroke the face unconsciously as his mind wandered over the days since his rescue, and then further back to their days together at school.

Slowly, though Draco failed to notice, Harry blinked his eyes open. Draco's fingers were just grazing his right cheek. When their eyes met, Draco's widened and he literally jumped off the bed, backing away.

'I'm sorry, you had something- um, I was just- I'm going to practice some. Sorry if I woke you,' he mumbled before turning and fleeing from the room. In the training room he sat right down on the floor and put his head in his hands.

'Need someone to practice with?' Draco's head flew up, his neck cracking. Harry was smiling, closing the door behind him. Draco studied him, but nothing appeared different. Perhaps the whole thing hadn't really registered. Perhaps he had still been somewhat asleep. Shaking off his nerves, he brushed himself off and got into a duelling position.

'Don't worry, I'll go easy until you knock me on my arse,' Harry grinned and Draco's eyes narrowed. He focused on this new goal with fierce determination.

XXX

It took a full week for the information gathering to be completed. During this time Draco hardly saw the others as he had made the training room his permanent home. His spells got stronger, more accurate and he studied all the spell books Severus had in his library. His schooling came back to him, though too slowly for his liking. Harry praised him every time they duelled, but Draco wasn't satisfied.

One thing that he was happy about was coming completely off Severus' potion and hardly feeling any itching at all. It was only when he sat too long lost in thought that he became restless. He didn't mention this to anyone, but went straight back to work to get his mind off it. He would not be on any potions – or drugs of any kind – again.

Draco knew the others were planning things in more detail now. He saw them bent over a map Severus had no doubt drawn. Harry's face was set with the usual grim determination. Despite this, Draco was still taken by surprise when Harry told him one night that tomorrow was the day.

'What?' Draco sat up in bed, having just got in. Harry was still by the foot of his, putting away his clothes (he always changed in the bathroom, which Draco both hated and was extremely grateful for).

'Tomorrow. You'll stay and help Molly?' It was both an order and a request. Draco nodded.

'Yes, of course, but tomorrow? So soon?'

'Not soon enough if you ask me,' Harry grumbled as he slipped into the opposite bed. Draco stared at him, at a loss.

'But are you sure you have enough information, what exactly is the plan?'

'There's no point going through it again. Snape's agreed, just so you know. We'll be back within a few hours, hopefully.' Harry lay down and closed his eyes, but then opened them to stare at Draco a moment. 'Don't worry,' he said and then he went to sleep. Draco wanted to protest, but he knew it would be useless.

He did not get very much sleep that night.


	11. Free

Huge thanks to Hidden_Lily for the quick beta. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed and sorry for not replying. Every second I'm not writing I'm working in the kitchen or at school

**Note!!:** A new warning has been added to this story. If you do not want to get spoiled, read on, if you prefer to know in advance, check the warnings list in chapter one.

-:-

_Chapter 11: Free _

Draco paced back and forth, never pausing. It wasn't helping him stop worrying, but it was helping him not pull his hair, which was not something he wanted to risk. Not when he was finally regaining some shine and what little volume he had had years ago.

'Draco, honey, please come and sit.' Draco glanced at Molly – she had forced him to call her that – but shook his head. 'I know you're worried. Believe me. I've been in this situation more times than I care to count. I know what you need to do.'

Draco paused the. He knew she was telling the truth. 'What?'

'You help me get everything ready for when they return.' Draco looked at her. She was sitting at the kitchen table, chopping vegetables ... by hand. She must have seen something in his eyes for her smile turned mischievous. 'Don't look so intimidated. It's very relaxing, and much more effective than wearing a hole in the floor.' Draco blushed slightly, but dragged himself over to the table and sat down. He ignored Molly's smug look.

After they prepared the ingredients for a good and hardy meal, they put together everything they would need for any injured people. They made all the beds with clean linen and they swept all the floors, though Draco felt decidedly odd in using a broom that way. He did appreciate how the menial labour put his mind off things, not completely, but for brief periods of time he could almost swear he wasn't thinking of Harry at all.

All too soon, however, even though it was now nightfall, Draco found himself with nothing to do and lamented it for probably the first time in his life. He excused himself and went outside to lean against the small building. The fog lay over the island now, thick, but moving quickly. Draco stared out into it, willing Harry to appear; to come and save him by simply being alive.

Just after the light was gone and Draco could only see a few feet in front of him thanks to the light from the slightly ajar door, he heard something.

It was the crack, crack, crack of several people apparating. Draco held his breath as he scanned the darkness.

'Harry!?' he called. No answer. 'Harry!' his voice cracked. Two figures suddenly stumbled out from the fog right in front of him. It was Harry. He was bleeding. Draco pushed the door open all the way, screaming 'Molly! They're here!' before helping the man who was leaning heavily against Harry. It took him a moment to realise that the emaciated form was Longbottom. He seemed barely conscious as Draco all but carried him inside.

'Put him in the first room,' Molly instructed. All the doors had been removed for easier access and Draco had no problem getting the man to bed. He wasn't quite sure what to do when he managed it. He turned to ask Molly, but found Harry in the doorway. His face was ashen, the scar standing out as it had during the war. There was blood coming from his shoulder. A bullet wound, Draco guessed.

'We need to get that looked at,' he said, gesturing. Harry's eyes slowly found his.

'He didn't recognise me,' he whispered. 'He's ...' Harry gasped and covered his mouth with his hand. Draco was at a loss what to do, but Harry fixed that by grabbing him and holding on for dear life. Draco hugged back just as tightly, feeling tears pressing against his eyes. Harry gasped several times, but seemed to hold in his crying.

'Harry?' a voice called, Draco wasn't sure who.

'Let's get you looked at,' he said again, trying to steer Harry from the room. The man allowed it eventually. The moment they stepped into the kitchen Harry was taken away by Granger. Draco was left to observe the chaos. Everyone was talking over each other. Severus was in a chair, his leg exposed as someone tended it. The kitchen table did not hold the food Draco had helped prepare. That was gone and on it lay Lupin, his chest heaving as he gasped for air. His front was exposed, a horrible gushing wound right in the middle. Molly was waving her wand, frantically murmuring. Kingsley was at the man's head, holding it between his hands and trying to keep him conscious.

'Draco!' Molly called and he was at her side a second later, following her instruction and performing disinfectant spells and trying to stop the bleeding while Molly tried locating the bullet. There weren't really spells against an actual bullet wound, considering the rarity of such an event. She couldn't simply summon it, obviously, but she wasn't a medi-witch either.

She was getting desperate and Lupin's heart was slowing, Draco could tell that much. Finally, something glinted in the candlelight. Molly discarded it with a wave of her wand and started repairing the damage.

'We need blood-replenishing potion,' she said. Draco nodded, and retrieved two vials from where they had arranged all the potions they might need. He handed them to Kingsley who forced them down Lupin's throat.

The man couldn't swallow it all. He choked and Kingsley waved his wand to help him. Molly was still trying to close the wound as best she could. The room had fallen silent, Lupin's shallow breathing the only sound.

'Molly, please,' he gasped. 'It's... it's too much. It's… there's two...'

'No, I'll manage,' Molly whispered, but Draco could tell she was uncertain. He was more worried about Lupin's words, however.

'Two? Two bullets, you mean?' he asked. Molly gasped and stopped her waving.

'Let me go...' whispered Lupin. 'I'm so tired.'

'Harry!' Draco cried, pushing his way past the people and down the hall. 'Harry.' They ran into each other just as Harry stepped out from the room. He was bare-chested and his shoulder was still red, though healed. Granger came out behind him.

'How's Remus?' Harry asked. Draco couldn't answer, but took Harry's hand and pulled. The room was deathly silent and Harry went straight to Lupin's side.

'Remus?' he whispered. 'What's wrong?'

'Nothing,' Lupin answered. 'Time to see Tonks and the others.'

'No,' Harry choked, tears finally falling. 'Not yet.'

'So tired, Harry. 'Msorry. Better this way, no more moons. I'm glad ...,' his speech slurred and Draco didn't catch all of it, '... for Neville. He needs it more.'

'But I need you,' Harry cried.

'You've always ...' Lupin gasped and Draco thought for a moment that he wouldn't continue, but then he settled, 'taken care of yourself, and now you have so many. And Draco.'

'Remus...' Harry leaned down and pressed a kiss to the man's forehead, right on one of the deeper scars. By the time he had lifted his head, Remus was asleep, for good. Draco felt a wave of sadness so strong it nearly overpowered him. The only other time he had felt sadness at another's death was his mother's. Harry gave an anguished cry and turned, reaching for Draco and holding on to him as he had before. Draco nearly staggered from the weight, but he held on.

Someone closed the man's eyes and Molly conjured a sheet to lay over his body. There was a hand on Draco's shoulder. It was Arthur.

'Take him to your room.' Draco nodded and started half-dragging Harry down the hallway. As they neared it Harry became a puppet that Draco controlled. He was changed into pyjamas and placed in bed. When Draco turned to leave to help out more, Harry suddenly shot up and grabbed him.

'Don't leave me.' Draco didn't say anything, but slipped off his outer robe and got in bed. Harry clung to him, crying silently with only the occasional hiccup. Draco stroked his hair for awhile until he fell silent, probably shutting down after the ordeal he had been through.

Draco lay awake, wishing he could take away Harry's sadness, and wondering why Remus had included him so specifically in his last words. In fact, it had been his very last word. Draco felt unworthy of it, but vowed to do everything in his power to not disappoint the man....

XXX

When Draco next awoke he was alone. He felt groggy and his throat was inexplicably sore. Not bothering with changing clothes just yet, he walked quietly down the hall, noting the doors had been replaced. He stopped when he heard voices from the kitchen.

'-all my fault. I admit that freely.'

'Stop it, Potter,' Severus' voice was harsh, but there was a quality Draco recognised – concern – that had not been so directed at Harry before. 'You said it yourself. We all made the choice, Remus as well.'

'There were just so many.' A commiserating silence followed. 'When did it happen?'

'It was right after we got your signal to get out. They had thrown in several more canisters of gas. Remus made the mistake of shifting his attention to one of them for a second, his shield must have failed, and I saw him ... but I was on the other side of the room ... I did not see that he was shot twice.'

'Where were you?' Draco pressed his ear to the door, listening as Granger answered.

'I was to his right, a little in front maybe. There were maybe six or seven canisters thrown in and I was banishing them as fast as I could-'

'It's not your fault....'

'Potter?' Draco heard a great sigh.

'It's not my fault either, happy?'

'No.' This was met with silence and Draco wondered if he should go back to his room.

'Breakfast will be ready soon,' Molly said, though she had lost her usual cheerful tone.

'Thanks, Molly, but I'm not-'

'No excuses. You all need to eat, and that is an order young man.' Draco took a deep breath and opened the door. All heads turned in his direction.

'Draco,' Harry said, something resembling relief in his voice. He got up and to Draco's surprise he came forward and hugged him tight. Afterwards he led him to the table as if nothing strange had happened. Draco glanced at Severus and Granger, but neither seemed shocked, or even mildly surprised. Harry's hand remained in the small of his back. Just who was comforting whom, exactly?

'How is ... Neville?' he asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.

'He's in and out of consciousness,' Severus answered. 'From my initial observations he is a very sick young man, both mentally and physically, though since I'm not a trained professional, I have no idea of the true extent of the former. Physically, he can be ... mended.'

'Harry, why don't you bring him some soup and see if he's awake,' Molly suggested, setting a bowl of very thin soup in front of him. Harry stared at it as if it were poison, then looked to Draco.

'Will you come with me?'

'Of course.' He didn't want to, but tried not to let his great reluctance show. Harry took the soup and went first. He didn't knock, but stepped quietly inside.

Longbottom was seated against the wall at the head of the bed, his knees bent and his arms around them. His face was hidden by the length of his hair. It had a sheen of grey; a sickly looking colour.

'Neville?' There was a slight movement, so clearly the man remembered his name. Perhaps all was not lost. 'Neville, it's Harry. Harry Potter. I've got some of Molly Weasley's soup. You'll like it, I promise.' Harry went closer, making no sudden moves. Neville raised his head and Draco almost looked away at the dead eyes.

'Harry Potter,' he said, his voice rough, like an old man's.

'Yes, your friend from Hogwarts, remember?' Harry said hopefully.

'I'm sorry.' Neville's head fell to his knees with a soft thump. Harry frowned, glancing at Draco confusedly and putting the soup on the bedside table. He knelt by the bed.

'What for?'

'I know what they do to me,' Neville whispered. 'I know. They think I don't. I know. They think I'm still insane from the pollen. I know. That wore off long ago. I know. Harry Potter's here. He comes and let's me know it's all my fault. I know.'

'Neville, no. We rescued you. You're safe now. The muggles are far away.'

'I ... I didn't know.' Harry leaned in closer to hear the words. Draco barely caught them, muffled as they were by Neville's body. 'The plant I didn't- I didn't know that.'

'Neville, look at me.' When he didn't react, Harry reached out and took hold of Neville's shoulders, pushing back so the man had to right himself. Red, puffy eyes stared back at him. 'You are safe now. We rescued you. You're free. Do you understand?'

For a long moment nothing happened and Draco was sure Neville simply hadn't heard Harry at all. Then, tears started sliding down the pale cheeks.

'Free?' Neville breathed, like the word was foreign to him.

'Free. Now, are you hungry?' Harry took the tray with the soup and placed it over Neville's lap. The man looked down seeming not to recognise the food, but then he bent his head down, grabbing the spoon, and started slurping the soup up rather loudly.

After that there was little contact to be made with the man. The moment Harry took the soup away he curled up facing the wall. He would say no more so Draco urged Harry to let him sleep. They returned to the kitchen. The mood in there was hardly any better.

'How is he?' Granger asked.

'I have no idea,' Harry answered, sitting heavily in a chair. 'He needs professional help. I don't even know where to begin.'

'He's out of there, at least,' Granger concluded. 'We need to find out how the muggles are reacting to our rescue, if they've gone public with anything.' Harry nodded.

'I could help with that,' Draco's mouth said before he had time to think. Everyone stared at him. 'I probably know more about the muggle world than any of you do right now. All I need is to get to London and I can find the right news sources.'

'No,' Harry said.

'You can't stop me every time, Harry,' Draco pointed out. 'You can't keep me here like some-' he had almost said it, and Harry knew. Green eyes turned guilty and he looked away in shame.

'Prisoner,' he finished. 'Is that how you feel?'

'No, of course not,' Draco really didn't want to have this conversation in front of the others, 'I didn't mean it like that.'

'Fine, but I'm coming with you.'

'Agreed.' Draco had no intention of going anywhere without him.


	12. Something Good

Thanks to Hidden Lily for the beta. I'm so glad people are still reading this story despite the long time between updates. You didn't even want my head after I killed off Remus. Thanks so much for reading and reviewing! :)

-:-

Chapter 12: Something Good

'Ready?' Draco nodded and took Harry's outstretched arm. He ignored the tingling in his gut as they apparated away. They appeared in a narrow alley in London; Draco had selected the location. Before he could pull away, Harry grabbed his arm and looked him in the eye. 'Stay close.'

'Of course, just try not to act ... magical.' Draco extricated himself and strode towards his goal: an Internet café were he could perhaps gleam more information. First, though, he wanted to check the papers, which was why he stopped when he reached the small shop. The headlines screamed at him without being magical:

_SECRET COMPOUND BREACHED._

"_PATIENT ZERO" HELD CAPTIVE AND EXPERIMENTED ON. _

_FIRST CAPTURED WIZARD – SECRET TO OUR SUCCESS. _

Draco was surprised; he had expected the government to keep things quiet. He bought them all with the money Harry had supplied him. He then nodded towards the park across the street and Harry followed him inside. He found a secluded spot underneath some trees and sat, spreading the different papers out. They both started reading at a furious pace.

As Draco read he was surprised by the critical view many of the articles were taking. Far from all, of course, because there were those who simply reported the events and then even hinted that other prisoners should take patient zero's place. But a lot were very hostile to the government's secret experiments. They wrote about a violation of human rights and dared to suggest that wizards had these rights. As Draco read a particularly eloquent and convincing letter sent in by a reader, he felt some of his faith in mankind restored, a tiny bit. As he put down the last article, he looked up and saw Harry scanning the bottom lines on another paper. He looked up as well, shock evident in his eyes.

'I never thought the whole thing would become public like this,' he commented.

'No, neither did I,' Draco admitted. 'Someone must have leaked the information.'

'A lot of people are angry and shocked, even disgusted.'

'Yes, well, not all muggles go crazy when finding out about magic.'

'I know that,' Harry gave Draco an odd look. 'It's strange to think that you do.'

'You think after four years in this world, after losing everything because of a madman, that I would-'

'I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that,' Harry cut in, 'I swear, I know you don't think like ... like you once did.'

'Good.' Draco found it difficult to say anything else, but he forced himself. 'I did meet people, nice people, who weren't caught up in everything Adam was planning.'

'Adam,' Harry repeated the name darkly and Draco shot him a look, taking in the glowering look. No doubt Harry was still angry about being captured by the man.

'Let's get to the Internet café, I want to read more.' Harry got up and held out a hand for Draco, who took it, ignoring the way his stomach flipped when Harry pulled him up so easily. _Honestly_, he berated himself, striding away without looking back.

XXX

Draco clicked away, trying to avoid glancing at Harry so he wouldn't have to quench a sudden burst of smugness. It was nice to be the one with the know-how, even if it was just a computer.

Draco had remembered when he had first encountered these things, but once you got into the logic of them, they became very easy to understand. Harry didn't seem to be willing to learn. He sat beside Draco sipping a large caffeine drink of some sort and shooting dark looks at the screen whenever Draco moved to fast from one page to another.

According to the latest news, the PM had yet to make any statements regarding the incident, but was scheduled to do so in less than an hour. All around the Internet – and all around them in the café – it was the only thing on people's minds. As more information had been leaked since this morning, the details about the experimenting had shocked people to the core. A lot of other countries had come out and deplored the incident, demanding a full investigation.

Things were all abuzz and suddenly civil-rights groups had leaped at the opportunity to finally have the chance to convince people that magic folk were human and had rights. Draco was comforted by this, and a tiny bit more of his faith was restored.

'Any way to tell just how many people are on our side?' Harry asked quietly.

'There hasn't been a poll, if that's what you're asking. Impossible to tell, really. I don't know how many people support the likes of Adam, but I'm hoping he's in the extreme group.' Harry nodded forcefully at this, but just as he was about to answer, Kingsley came through the door. He spotted them at once – both had muggle clothing of course, but only Harry wore a disguise just in case someone from Adam's group saw him. He had glamoured his hair light brown and with thick bangs to cover his forehead.

'I've just been to Downing Street,' Kingsley all but panted when he reached them, leaning down so they weren't overheard. Draco tried to ignore how close Harry was. 'Lucius Malfoy was there.'

'What?' Draco and Harry hissed at the exact same time.

'I was across the street, but I wouldn't mistake that man. He went inside with a bunch of people, lots of cabinet members. His hair was cut short, though, like a muggle.'

'What on earth is he doing there?' Harry wondered, spitting out a curse and getting up to leave.

'Harry, wait,' Draco said as he quickly logged off. Kingsley waited for him, but they had to run to catch up with Harry as he disappeared into the park. They found him underneath the same group of trees. 'Harry?'

The man shook his head, pacing back and forth a few times. He stopped abruptly and caught Draco's eye.

'What's he doing, Draco?' he asked. How would Draco know? He swallowed, wanting to help, but not knowing how. 'Come on, think. What's he up to?'

'I don't know.'

'He's your father.'

'And?' Draco snapped.

'I think he's the one that's leaking all this information,' Kingsley said. Draco rounded on him, confused. 'He must have contacts in the government. He's Lucius Malfoy, if anyone does.... He's probably been keeping tabs on us, and knew exactly what we were planning. Maybe he even knew it was Neville before we did. The point is, I think he's on the right track.'

'What? You trust him?' Harry exclaimed. Kingsley shook his head.

'Not a chance, but I do trust he's doing what's in his best interest, and right now we may share those interests.'

'He knows he can't win through fighting,' Draco said quietly to convince himself. 'Maybe he's finally realised that and thinks he can come to some sort of ... cease fire.' He looked to Kingsley, whose eyes glittered.

'Exactly.'

'Damn, if he had such contacts he should have told me!' Harry growled.

'My father would never give away information unless absolutely necessary,' Draco said, knowing that much at least.

'Or...' Kingsley began, 'he might just have Imperius'd and intimidated his way inside since he disappeared.' The statement brought a pause to Draco's thoughts. He wanted to say his father wouldn't do that, because he knew how Harry felt about that kind of magic, but he knew it was true. They all did. However and whenever Lucius had gained access to the muggle government, the fact remained: he was about to reveal his plan.

'Let's get to a television,' Draco suggested. Harry nodded and they headed out.

XXX

The whole pub was riveted on the lone man in front of the dozens and dozens of cameras.

_'… There will be a full investigation on "patient zero." This incident is a symptom on how far we have fallen from a lawful society. I am not saying we should pull down all the work we have done to control magic, for it does need to be controlled, but many prisoners have not been put on trial. We need to open a dialogue with wizards. They have the right to defend themselves in court, just as we have the right to demand they abide by our laws if they wish to remain in our country. I, therefore, call upon whoever claims the title of leader among the wa- wizards... to come forth. We will have an open meeting, so the world can hear us both, and perhaps we can find a way to coexist. Until then, there will be no more raids on suspected wizarding sites...' _ The crowd of reporters erupted into questions at this and it took quite some time before the PM could get another word in. Draco barely managed to hear the time and place of the supposed meeting.

He turned to Harry, who was sipping a pint next to him, and said: 'He's calling for you.' Harry shook his head, putting the glass down, but not looking at Draco. He turned to Kingsley instead.

'You should go.'

'No, I wouldn't convince anybody,' the man said. 'My days in politics are over. Our world needs you again, Harry.... Well, they never stopped needing you I'm afraid, but the people out there will respond to you, not me.' Harry sighed and Draco knew he had resigned himself to his fate once more. They finished their drinks and then decided to head back to report everything they had learned. Draco was feeling a dead weight in the pit of his stomach now. No more fluttering. Just dread. Even though they should be hopeful the muggles wanted to hear their side, he couldn't help feeling terrified that they would simply steal Harry away from him.

XXX

After everyone had heard everything, with mostly Harry doing the talking, they had a subdued dinner. Draco didn't feel it was quiet, though, because it was like he could hear the buzzing going on inside each person's head. He wanted to know what Harry was thinking. What was he going to do? And he also couldn't stop thinking about his father. Was what he was planning good for them? Or just good for him alone?

Harry asked about Neville as they were cleaning up, and Molly told him Granger had been with him almost all day. He did seem to finally realise he wasn't with the muggles anymore, but the smallest of things could send him into a panic. Harry and Granger disappeared into the broken man's room, and Draco decided to join Severus in his potions lab.

'Would you like to help me chop?' Severus asked, surprising Draco since he knew the man was very particular about his ingredients. Draco found his fingers remembered the motions perfectly and allowed himself to get drawn in by the manual labour – 'wow,' he thought to himself, 'Molly Weasley really does know what works.'

'How do you think my father ended up at Downing Street?'

'I knew he had contacts within the muggle world. Squibs, but if any of them were in government, I have no idea,' Severus murmured as they worked.

'Do you think he arranged this ... meeting?'

'Possibly.'

'Why wouldn't he just tell them he was the leader of the wizarding world?'

'Perhaps even he realises the power of Harry Potter that doesn't reside in his magic.'

'What do you mean?' Draco's eyebrows furrowed. He glanced at the man, but Severus' eyes were on the potion only.

'Surely you of all people have noticed how Potter seems to ... pull people in.' Draco returned his eyes to the table just as Severus shot him a knowing look.

'I don't know what you mean.'

'Don't lie to me,' Severus said softly, uncharacteristically soft. 'I care for you too much to not notice things like this. Even Lupin noticed.' At the mention of Remus, Draco's heart constricted. Harry hadn't spoken about him since yesterday, but they had hardly had time.

'Things?'

'Feelings. It's all right, Draco.' The knife missed the root completely and knocked on the wood of the table hard.

'How is it all right?' Draco asked tightly. He looked to his mentor for guidance.

'Potter is a self-sacrificing Gryffindor. Idiotic, reckless, but loyal to the core and fiercely righteous.'

'So?' Draco asked desperately. Severus smiled at him.

'He'll never hurt you, intentionally, but take care to avoid misunderstandings.' Draco took in the words, but didn't know how they could help him.

'He's not ... I mean we haven't ...'

'Not surprising, considering the idiotic part,' Severus grumbled. 'But considering the things you've both been through, perhaps it's best to let the Gryffindor stupidity in love let slow the process down.'

'What?' Severus stepped over and gently took the knife from Draco's hand.

'Why don't you go inside and get some rest.' Draco noticed his roots were worse than a first-year's and decided Severus was right to kick him out. He fled inside and went straight to the bedroom, though he sat and read because he knew that if he went to sleep then his thoughts would carry into his dreams.

'Still up?' Harry asked as he entered. Draco put his book away and watched him.

'How's Neville?'

'More coherent, I think,' Harry said with a sigh, sitting down on the bed and pulling off his shoes. He sighed again then looked at Draco seriously. 'Are you all right?'

'Am I all right? I should ask you that question.'

'You're the one who's been practically ignoring me and pulling away all day!' Harry protested.

'What? I have not!' Draco was indignant. 'You've been moody all day,' he countered, but then softened, 'but that's completely understandable, with all you've been through. I thought you might like to talk about it, but I know you have your friends so I shouldn't ...' What, care? Butt in? Draco looked down at the hands in his lap, feeling helpless (a common emotion for him lately), until he felt the bed dip and lifted his head to find Harry sitting almost right in front of him.

'I don't really want to talk about Remus right now,' he said quietly. 'But when I do ... it's nice to know you'll...'

'Be here,' Draco finished, feeling a lump in his throat. Harry rewarded him with a small smile of gratitude.

'Yeah ... so you weren't ignoring me?' Draco shook his head, feeling his cheeks pink slightly as he thought about what he had been trying to ignore; something that was becoming increasingly difficult with Harry so close. A big part of him was screaming: _Why try and ignore it? _

Suddenly, a hand was in his hair. Harry's eyes were intense, continuously scanning his face. Draco's heart started hammering as the man leaned in, his whole face obscuring the rest of the world. Draco closed his eyes, waiting in toe-curling anticipation....

Nothing happened.

He opened his eyes again to find Harry hadn't moved, but he was just as close.

'Maybe we shouldn't ... so much is happening around us, to us....' Draco took a deep breath, knowing he was going to put his whole heart into this, because if he didn't... well, he didn't want to contemplate that.

'All the more reason not to hesitate when something _good_ comes along.' Harry seemed to hesitate for half a second, then he closed the small gap between them and Draco felt his lips touching his lightly. He pressed back a little. He kissed Harry softly, finding he couldn't hold himself back now he knew Harry wanted the same as him. He kissed Harry's upper lip, lower lip, then covered them as best he could one last time before pulling back-

Only Harry wouldn't let him. The hand behind his head pressed him forward and Harry pressed more forcefully. Draco opened his mouth and gasped as Harry delved inside.

When Harry pulled back their breathing seemed louder than a storm, but that was only because no other sound seemed to exist.

'Sleep beside me?' Harry whispered. 'Like you did last night.'

'Of course,' Draco said reassuringly. He gestured for Harry to get under the covers. Draco's whole face and chest turned pink when Harry got up, stripped down to his boxers, before crawling in without another word. As Harry clung to him, Draco's heart calmed and he couldn't help but snuggle closer.

'Thank you,' was the last thing Harry whispered. Draco answered with the same, but the already sleeping hero never heard it.


	13. Meeting

I'm so sorry for the delay, but something was wrong with FF and it wouldn't convert my file properly. I tried contacting support, but I'm betting they have loads to do, luckily it started working again today.

A huge thanks to Hidden Lily for the swift beta and to all the readers. Glad you're still sticking with the story!

**Note**: I do not know anything about the present-day court system in Britain apart from what I see in Monty Python sketches.

-:-

_Chapter 13: Meeting_

Draco woke to a feeling of utter contentment. For a moment he hardly dared believe it. Was he allowed to feel such warm and fuzzy feelings? When Harry moved and seemed to squeeze him in answer, Draco smiled to himself and decided that yes, he did dare to believe.

He tilted his head forward and kissed the dark locks of hair tickling him. Harry stirred, lifting his head slowly and blinking down at Draco.

'Morning,' Draco said.

'Morning,' Harry mumbled. He seemed to search Draco's face for a long moment, then he leaned down. Draco's breath hitched as Harry's lips pressed firmly against his.

Several sweet kisses later, Harry pulled back reluctantly, his lips lingering by the corner of Draco's mouth.

'We should get up,' he whispered. Draco mumbled something in the affirmative. Harry sighed and started kissing him again.

Draco floated on a high, but eventually they heard Granger or maybe Molly calling them. Harry sat up in bed and gave Draco such a sweet look.

'How are you feeling?' Harry asked. 'You look better every day.'

'I feel better every day,' Draco said honestly. 'I'll be able to beat you in a duel soon.'

'You think so?' Harry raised a dubious eyebrow and Draco punched him lightly. Then they heard Molly yelling for them that breakfast was ready so they got up.

At the breakfast table Draco kept sending glances at Harry, who returned them with a playful look. Once he caught Severus' eye and the man gave him such a smug, knowing look Draco felt his cheeks pink.

'Have you decided what you're going to do about this open meeting?' Granger asked. Draco immediately lost his colour. He looked to Harry, who had put down his toast and was gazing seriously at the table, deep in thought.

'Obviously, this might be a very important meeting. I think the best course of action is simply to make contact with the PM and see how he means to accomplish it.' He glanced at Kingsley. 'Think we can manage it?' Kingsley coughed to clear his throat and Draco narrowed his eyes. The man was about to say something they weren't going to like.

'I've been thinking. It would be easy to get access to the PM through magical means, but I'm certain you'll agree that would be the best way, considering. So... perhaps the easiest way is simply to contact Malfoy-'

'What?!' several Weasleys exclaimed, and Draco would deny he had also voiced a similar sentiment.

'I've been thinking about that as well,' Harry admitted. 'Will you do it?' Kingsley nodded and took the last sip of his tea before rising. Harry stood as well and they walked outside together. Draco could tell they wanted to converse privately, but he shot a desperate look at Severus all the same. The man appeared unmoved, almost bored.

'It is the logical course,' he said simply.

'But...! He could be- I don't know! Planning something horrible.'

'Think about it reasonably, Draco. Why is your father working with the muggles?'

'Because he plans to get rid of them from the inside?' Draco muttered.

'Your father has a tendency to become blinded by principles and ideologies at first, but I think we both know that after events have ... shook him, so to speak, he generally allows his logic to prevail. He must realise now that the best way of ending this conflict is to agree to terms.'

'How can you be so sure?'

'I'm not,' Severus admitted. Draco noted how the whole table had fallen silent. 'But I have known your father many years and, despite recent events, I have faith in both him and my assessment of his personality.'

Draco grumbled some more, but couldn't help hope that his godfather was correct. He usually was, thankfully.

XXX

'I'm coming with you,' Draco declared, pulling on his other cloak alongside Harry, who stopped short, one arm in a sleeve.

'No, absolutely not,' he shook his head. Draco had deliberately waited until they were on their way out the door.

'You can't stop me.' Harry pulled on his cloak, his jawline clenching. He wouldn't look Draco in the eye.

'Are you sure?'

'I'm coming.' For a moment Draco actually thought Harry was going to stop him, but in the end he just yanked the door open and strode outside into the wind. Kingsley followed them, and when they neared the sea Draco turned and reached out for Harry. Their hands were cold and both gripped hard, their eyes finally meeting as they popped off the island.

They arrived on mainland Norway, but didn't stay long, apparating to another set of islands before finally appearing in the middle of London. The road was lined with very fashionable houses, all white with Romanesque columns framing the tall black doors. They reached number 42 and Draco was surprised that he couldn't detect any wards. It wasn't until he made use of the knocker that he felt a powerful, though brief, surge of magic. It had clearly read his identity in some way. Coming suddenly seemed like a very bad idea. He stepped back and was grateful despite his shame when Harry moved to half-shield him.

The door opened and Lucius Malfoy smiled at them as though they were old acquaintances. He wore a crisp pin-striped suit with a pale blue shirt, open at the collar with no tie. He looked positively alien.

'Mr. Potter, Kingsley, so glad you could come ... and Draco ...' Something painful flitted over his face, but it was gone before Draco could read it and the same bland smile invited them inside.

'How on earth did you manage this?' Harry asked as he tilted his head back to examine the chandelier. They were ushered further inside to a sitting room decorated in Slytherin green.

'Surely the great Harry Potter has no problem getting Muggle funds?' Lucius asked with a raised eyebrow as they seated themselves. Tea was already on the table and Lucius started to pour it himself.

'You ...'

'I have always had several accounts with muggle banks,' Lucius explained. 'All perfectly legal. No magic involved as a matter of fact.' Draco could tell this surprised Harry, though Draco knew for a fact that his father had more than once conjured muggle money out of thin air.

'So ... this meeting?'

'Right down to business, then?' Harry nodded tightly and did not accept the tea Lucius handed him. 'Oh, come now, Mr. Potter.'

'We came here for information,' Harry reminded him. 'Not pleasantries. Tell us about the meeting.' There was a few seconds of complete silence. Draco swallowed, wanting at the same time to get the meeting over with and to talk with his father. Finally, Lucius put the tea down and sat back in his chair.

'There is no meeting.'

'What?!'

'There is only a trial.' None of them should have been surprised, but Harry still looked angry. 'A rather unconventional trial, to be sure, but a trial nonetheless. They are calling it a meeting to ascertain the threat of the magical community.' Harry rose abruptly and started pacing. 'They want to prove neutralizations are necessary.' The young man stopped short, staring hard at the former Slytherin.

'Are you going to say I told you so?' he asked bitterly. 'That now is the time to fight?'

'No,' Lucius denied, 'that would be futile.'

'Then what?' Lucius shrugged casually, without a care in the world.

'You go of course. You defend our right to exist.' Harry snorted loudly and Draco winced at the undignified sound. 'Don't be so negative, Mr Potter. If anyone has the power to convince the High Court of this land to leave us alone, I would put my money on you.'

'Why?' Harry sounded utterly baffled by the notion.

'I'm not saying I will put any money on the outcome, mind,' Lucius warned. 'I fully expect you to fail and for this war to continue to its end. But, I also fully expect you to give this everything you've got. It should be quite amusing, actually.' By the end of Lucius' speech, Harry looked sour and Draco sympathised.

'And you've decided you'd rather just stay out of it and play the muggle?' This caused Lucius' eyes to darken.

'If my choices are tricking a few dim-witted muggles and living wherever it is you've dug a hole for yourself, then I prefer this. I'm sure Draco would agree.' All of a sudden everyone's attention was on him and now he was really regretting the decision to come. He gulped, looking from his father to Harry, frantically trying to think of a diplomatic answer that would offend no one. His Slytherin mind seemed to come to a screeching halt at his father's expectant gaze that seemed almost to hold a hint of hope.

'I-...'

'You can stay if you want,' Harry abruptly told him. 'You're free to do whatever you want.'

'I should hope my son has always been aware of that fact, Potter,' Lucius spat out.

'I know that, I just meant-'

'I can't stay, Father,' Draco said quietly, his gaze falling to his hand. 'I'm sorry.'

'As Potter just pointed out, you are free to do as you wish ...'

'I'm part of this war now, Father. I've chosen a side and I can't step aside.' He heard his father sigh.

'This was not what I meant when I said to stay with Potter.'

'You what?' Harry exclaimed, but Draco spoke over him before anyone answered him.

'I want to do the right thing for once in my life. For the first time in a long while I don't wake up and feel like crap, and I think that if I go back to pretending to be a muggle ... I might go back to ... other things.'

'I do not believe that for a second,' Lucius said fiercely, surprising Draco into lifting his head. 'You are far stronger than you believe.'

'For once I agree,' Harry muttered, but he looked concerned about Draco's statement. Seeing such concern in both their eyes made Draco's heart flutter. He knew his father wasn't the best of men, but the fact that he had the capacity to feel such emotions had to count for something and Draco clung to that. Lucius rose, making a tired noise.

'Go, all of you. The "meeting" is to be held at the Royal Court of Justice tomorrow at ten o'clock. You are to come without wands, but that is hardly necessary as I'm sure you can conceal them, just in case of course. You should come prepared.'

Draco felt bereft as they were all ushered back to the entrance hall. Just as Harry and Kingsley exited, Lucius grabbed him by the arm and Draco's heart jumped into his throat for a second. His father only leaned in and whispered 'be safe' before guiding him outside and saying goodbye.

'I'm going to talk to some other contacts about this,' Kingsley said. 'I'll see you for dinner.' With that, he apparated. Harry grabbed Draco's arm just as Lucius had done, and took him on a side-along without so much as a by-your-leave. When they finally arrived on the windy island, Draco gave a soft 'omph' as Harry pulled him into a hug.

'Are you all right?' Harry asked. Draco sighed and hugged him back.

'I'm fine.'

'I knew you shouldn't have come along.'

'I'm glad I did, actually,' Draco admitted. 'It was good to see him again, even though he's ...' _What? A traitor, a criminal? _All Draco could think of was: _My father_.

'He's your father,' Harry echoed, causing Draco to blink and pull back enough to look the man in the eye. 'Just because he made a lot of horrible decisions, doesn't change that at all, and I would have understood if you had wanted to stay, but I'm really, really glad you didn't.' Harry didn't let him reply or express his gratitude, but kissed him with full force, banishing the cold from the wind in a moment. Draco kissed back with equal fervour, almost smiling with the knowledge that he had such an understanding lover.


	14. Appeal

Hello all. A big thanks to Hidden Lily for the quick beta. Sorry I haven't responded to any reviews but I love reading them so much. Still, I think you all prefer me writing more story than replies, eh? Thank you to all who are still bothering to read this story. Enjoy the chapter!

-:-

_Chapter 14: Appeal _

Draco lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, but avoiding any sense of deja vu simply because these days when he lay in bed like this, his emotions were swirling. Not long ago he had been barely a walking corpse, not caring about whether he lived or died. Now, he cared all too much.

Harry was still out there talking, but Draco couldn't handle any more discussions. He wasn't used to being a part of things. He knew things might change for better or worse tomorrow, and he couldn't help wondering ....

Had he made all the right decisions since he helped Harry escape and let himself be rescued in return?

As the door quietly opened and Harry slipped inside, his face going from serious to a fond smile at the sight of him, Draco merely shook his head at his own ridiculousness.

There wasn't any doubt how right that one action had proved to be, come what may tomorrow.

Harry pulled off his shirt and trousers, reaching for his pyjamas-

'Wait,' Draco whispered, lifting his covers in invitation, showing that he didn't have much on at all. He could see Harry's throat swallowing as he stared at Draco, who almost put the covers down again as he blushed red down to his navel, but then Harry stripped completely and jumped in beside him.

'Jesus and Merlin, you're cold,' Draco muttered and Harry snorted at the mixed cursing. He snuggled closer and Draco gasped. 'Have you been outside?'

'Mmmm, maybe,' Harry murmured, turning his head and kissing Draco's collarbone. He followed its contour, causing different kinds of shivers.

'Oh, that's nice,' Draco encouraged. He tugged at Harry until their lips met, banishing the last remnants of cold.

It felt almost innocent, Draco mused as they cuddled and snogged underneath the covers, the cold from the stone walls kept at bay by their passion; innocent compared to his sex-life up to that point. He didn't really want to compare or remember at all. Harry was so very different from Adam and his ... friends.

'You all right?' Harry whispered. 'We don't have to-'

'Just ...' Draco fought his cringe at the cheesy line- 'make love to me.' Harry smiled, a soft chuckle escaping him, and kissed Draco's pointy nose.

'Love to.' Harry shifted so he was covering more of Draco and began kissing him in earnest. One couldn't help but admire the absolute honesty in every kiss, its unashamed passion and caring. Draco closed his eyes, letting his emotions get the better of him, for it ignited him. He took a firm hold of Harry's hair, tilting the head to the side and kissed back with burning need.

'Oh,' Harry gasped as he settled firmly between Draco's legs. They started rocking, the covers slipping. Harry made a grab for it and for a few moments it was awkward as he summoned his wand and cast a mild sticking charm so it wouldn't slip. Draco wondered if it was the cold or the slight fear that someone would make a late-night visit. 'Sorry,' Harry muttered.

'Doesn't matter.' In fact it was rather endearing, though Draco would never say that. They slowly found their rhythm again. Draco gasped into Harry's mouth and made indignant noises, but he hardly cared. The bed started creaking, but neither noticed. They forgot all about plans, awkwardness or that big important thing called reality. Draco wanted to look down between them, but Harry distracted him with his increasingly sloppy kisses. He scratched at the man's back, but failed to find purchase as both of them were getting sweaty.

'Gah, ah, 'Ha-arry,' he moaned, loud enough to cause embarrassment even in his current state. Harry's answering groan made up for it. Draco couldn't tell who started, but all too soon he had to let go.

They came down from their high with sweating foreheads pressed together, arms around each other.

'Merlin, I hope no one heard us,' Harry suddenly announced. It was almost exactly what Draco had been thinking and a bark of laughter escaped him. Harry chuckled self-consciously so Draco shut him up with a slow kiss. Harry's hum of approval was very satisfying.

They fell asleep sticky and warm, but most importantly, for Draco at least, with the knowledge that it had been worth it, come what would.

XXX

Draco had never seen such a crowd. Unruly, deafening, terrifying; all too nice words for the scene in front of them. The streets were filled for miles and miles around. They were shouting, waving signs, half of them demanding the warts be arrested and neutralised on sight, the other screaming for fairness and a stop to the violence ... though perhaps the "half" bit was a slight exaggeration. In any case it was impossible to tell because they were all equally loud.

The police and military were trying to keep the two sides separated. A platform had been erected in front of the court building. Draco supposed some sort of statement from some important person was going to come from there, but he was more preoccupied with wondering how the hell they were going to get inside.

They weren't disguised with magic and that fact alone put Draco on edge. He was wearing jeans and a green sweater with a baseball cap and scarf to cover his features in case they needed to make a quick get away. Harry wore similar attire.

They were accompanied by the Weasleys, Kingsley, and Snape, who were supposed to be behind them, but when Draco glanced over his shoulder he only thought he spotted a red head somewhere in the sea of people.

When he turned back his heart leapt into his throat. 'Harry!' he yelled, scanning the crowd in search of him.

Then a strong hand slipped into his and gripped it hard enough to bruise. Harry's face was filled with equal parts worry and relief. Draco pressed close.

'We should get out of here,' he practically shouted into Harry's ear in the hopes of being heard.

'No, we have to do this,' Harry replied. They were nearing the platform, but Draco had no idea how they were going to get by the police.

Draco looked up and saw a lot of official-looking people standing on the platform. The noise from the crowd picked up, people swaying like waves crashing upon the shore. Fights were breaking out and law-enforcement was pushing into the crowd to intervene.

'Shit!' Harry cried as he and Draco were pushed in different directions. Their hands were slipping. Just as they were about to lose each other, Draco felt himself being pulled into Harry's Apparition. Because of the distance between them Draco was barely pulled along. When he appeared he swayed dangerously, feeling the distinct urge to throw up. His ears were assaulted by a gasping and roaring crowd.

'Listen to me!' Harry's voice was loud now and Draco blinked his eyes open to the sight of Harry shouting into a microphone. 'Please, listen!' Slowly, the noise abated, but they were hardly silent. Draco felt as if they were standing on top of them all, and swaying with them. He gripped the railing. 'We have a right to be heard.'

As Harry realised he actually had the massive crowd's attention – whether from his magical appearance or his reasonable request Draco knew not - he suddenly grew noticeably uncertain.

'Go on,' Draco urged. 'There's no one else.' Harry nodded and turned to face the crowd, filling his lungs with air quickly and then speaking clearly and confidently. Draco admired him immensely in that moment.

'Look at me,' Harry began. 'My name is Harry Potter. I always knew I was kinda different because strange things would always happen around me. People called me a freak, bullied me even. I didn't think there was anything I could do to change any of that. Then a letter came that changed my life.

'I found out there was a whole world with people like me and they saved me. I never asked for magic, in fact when I was little I would probably give anything to be rid of it, but wizards taught me control and understanding. Without Hogwarts, without the Ministry of Magic, I _would_ be as uncontrollable as many of you fear.'

Harry took a deep breath. Draco scanned the crowd. Many faces were turned to him in awe and hope, but many others held fear and disgust. It was impossible to tell if Harry's speech was having any impact. They hadn't talked about this sort of thing, so for Harry to just speak from his heart like this was amazing to hear, and see.

'You hunt us down like animals, and insist we have too much power, but you fail to realise what destroying our world will do: it will do exactly what you're trying to stop: make us uncontrollable and maybe even dangerous. I won't deny that having magic is probably a lot more power than one single person should have, but that's just it! We aren't one person, we're thousands, tens of thousands world wide, and without _our_ world, then we will cease to be, and the individuals will be all that's left.

'You say we need to follow your laws if we're to live in your country, but this is our country too, and this government hasn't been following its laws while locking us up and throwing away the key. Neville Longbottom is one of my best friends. He was working with a group of biologists, but when they found out what he was, they locked him up and experimented on him, driving him almost completely insane. Is this right? Or is he just a wart?'

Harry had tears in his eyes at this point, and Draco could feel sour bile in his throat at the thought of the things done to witches and wizards everywhere.

'Draco Malfoy, the man standing next to me, had to live in hiding for years in terrible conditions. If his magic had manifested even for a second without his control, he would be in prison without trial, for breaking an unfair and impossible law. A law that reminds me of the worst kinds of laws passed in the history of mankind...'

Harry let that reference lie, but Draco could tell it had not gone unnoticed by the crowd.

'For thousands of years we've lived apart from you with a live and let live philosophy, mostly, but we can't go back to that now. We want to coexist, but this is an unprecedented situation. We're not a problem that will go away with enough neutralisations. Sooner or later you're son or daughter will come to you and say they did something magical. It could happen to anyone. It happened to me.'

Harry stopped rather abruptly, perhaps realising he had nothing more to say. The crowd was almost completely silent. He turned to Draco, looking a little lost. Draco smiled reassuringly, a little unnerved at the lack of noise, but wanting to be strong for Harry.

His smile was cut off rather abruptly, however, when a sickening loud bang noise was heard from below and something hard and painful struck him in the gut. Harry's eyes grew wide with horror. Draco looked down to see his green sweater was growing darker and darker. The pain was minimal, actually, unreal.

'YOU TRAITOR!' someone shouted. Draco's eyes found a face in the crowd. Adam's face was twisted in rage, the gun still pointed upwards. He fired another shot, but it never reached Draco, because Harry's wand was out and the bullet hit his shield.

The crowd was screaming now and the opposing sides were at each other's throats. They stormed towards the platform, the military pushing back violently. Draco felt short of breath.

'Draco!' Harry cried, supporting him. When had his legs given out? 'Stay with me. I'm going to risk Apparition, all right? Hang on.' Draco's head became so heavy it fell back and blackness was threatening. He could feel the wetness of all the blood, and the pain was increasing steadily. Harry took hold of his head. 'Draco, look at me!'

'Harry.' Ow, his stomach was really hurting now. He grimaced.

'Can you hold on?' Draco wanted to say yes, he'd be fine, but he wasn't sure, so he nodded. Harry gathered him up in his arms.

'Still worth it,' he whispered just as the pain became unbearable as he was pressed through Harry's point of Apparition. He screamed and then everything went black.


	15. Dream

Beta: A huge thanks to Hidden Lily for the quick beta!

Note: Sorry for the long wait again, but my master's project is just swallowing all my time. I hope there's people still reading this and thank you for sticking with this story. A big thank you to those who have taken the time to review, despite that I'm so terrible at replying. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I was really exciting to write so I hope it turned out ok.

-:-

_Chapter 15: Dream_

His head was filled with cotton balls. Stuffed completely full. He heard muffled screaming, moaning maybe, and angry shouting, no doubt. There were vague ball-shaped lights of different colours passing over him, hovering here and there before moving on.

And there was pain.

An aching enduring pain that he fully believed would never go away, so deep in him did it lie.

Then, quite unexpectedly, something plunged into his gut and twisted – at least, that's what it felt like.

So, everything went black again.

An age later, someone was holding his hand. His head wasn't quite so stuffed, and the pain was gone. All his limbs felt like they were made of lead, but he no longer felt like he was slipping away.

'You need to eat something,' a woman said. Granger, he realised.

'I'm not hungry.' Harry – Draco wanted to open his mouth and say something, but he was so tired.

'Please, Harry.'

'Go away.' Draco wanted to know why Harry sounded so angry, instead of simply worried. There was a long pause.

'Snape wants to discuss Adam-'

'Not. Now.' Harry enunciated clearly. 'Besides, he knows how I feel about it.'

'You spoke in the heat of the moment,' Granger argued. 'Surely you-'

'Don't presume to know how I feel,' Harry hissed and Draco was almost afraid. 'I meant it- he should have been killed on sight.'

'But they didn't, and so-'

'So? They should finish the job.'

'Harry,' Granger exclaimed, half scandalised. 'You don't mean that,' she insisted.

'They should never have brought him _here_!' Harry half-shouted, clearly trying to keep it down. 'He almost _killed _Draco. Do you have any idea-' He seemed to choke as he cut himself off. Draco tried desperately to open his mouth to tell Harry he was all right.

'You love him,' Granger said, her voice laced with certainty, but also surprise.

'You didn't notice before? That's not like you,' Harry snorted. He sighed. 'It's fast, I know, but he's just ... so amazing, so strong. To have gone from this little, annoying, spoiled, arrogant kid to ... him...'

'It is quite an accomplishment,' Granger agreed and Draco would have blushed if he had the strength. Hearing Harry say these things was making his heart sore, but it also made him want to tell Harry he loved him back.

_I love you too, _Draco said the words in his head, and knew he wouldn't hesitate to say them, not when Harry had so easily admitted it.

'Harry,' he finally managed. He heard the scrape of a chair and then felt Harry's presence hovering over him.

'Draco, thank Merlin. How are you feeling?' Draco felt a smile curve his lips.

'I love you too,' he whispered and then allowed himself to drift back to sleep.

XXX

When next he regained consciousness he felt a chill creeping into him. Blinking his eyes open, he encountered only darkness. He quickly felt his way to the bedside table and sighed in relief when he found his wand.

'Lumos.'

He flinched despite himself when the light burst forth. Harry was asleep in a chair placed as close to the bed as possible. Why hadn't he just slept in his own bed? Draco shook his head ruefully. He carefully manoeuvred himself out of bed and draped the duvet over Harry's sleeping form.

The hallway was dark and cold, and Draco hugged himself, casting warming charms, but they weren't very good as he was still tired. He grabbed a cloak that hung by the door, noting by its length that it was probably Severus'.

Outside the wind was howling and Draco was almost pushed completely back inside. He quickly shut the door behind him, hoping no one had awoken. He could not see the potions lab at all.

Perhaps he should go back inside? A rational voice inside his head suggested, but he was determined. He had known where he was going the moment he woke up. He wrapped the cloak tightly around him and shot a bolt of light in the direction he hoped was correct. Thank Merlin for magic, or else the wind would have diverted it. As it was, it hit a door in the distance and Draco stalked forward, bent into the wind.

By the time he reached the small stone building he was exhausted. He had to use magic to get the door open, but it still used a fair bit of his strength. Once it was closed with him inside, he collapsed against it, panting for breath.

Unconsciousness threatened, but he forced himself to calm down. Slowly, his breathing returned to normal and he cast the spell to light the torches in the room.

Iron bars now divided the room he and Harry had been using to duel. Behind the bars was a cot against the wall and on the cot sat a young man with intense eyes, staring straight at Draco.

Adam.

Draco gulped. Perhaps he really shouldn't have come.

'Adam,' he whispered, unsure what he felt, what he was suppose to say, what on earth he had been thinking coming here.

'David.' Draco closed his eyes at the name. God, it wasn't that long ago, when his life had seemed too empty. Only Adam had given it any ... substance. 'Is that your real name, even? I doubt it. You warts always have weird names. So, what is it really?'

Draco slowly rose to his feet and took a few steps forward. Adam looked dark, radiating hatred. For some reason, Draco found he couldn't really blame him. He had lied, after all, for two years.

'My name is Draco ... Draco Malfoy.' It felt strange to say that to a muggle. It was as if there had been a giant wall between that life and this one, protected by Harry Potter in a way, and now it was crumbling.

'Typical,' Adam snorted, shaking his head in disgust. 'So, are you here to gloat?'

'What? No,' Draco stuttered, surprised. 'I-... I don't know...' He looked away. 'I'm sorry.' There was a long silence. Draco wondered if Adam was simply ignoring him, then-

A loud clang made Draco jump back. Adam had gotten up and had crushed what appeared to be a coffee cup against the bars. His face was pressed between two bars, snarling almost.

'Sorry? Two years you walked among us! I took care of you! Fucking Christ, I _slept_ with you. And all along you were a filthy wart!'

'You took care of me?' Draco asked, an odd calmness settling over him, but it was being replaced by indignation as he spoke. 'You provided me with drugs in exchange for sex!' Adam rolled his eyes and scoffed.

'You wanted drugs and I provided. The sex had nothing to do with it. You chose your own method of payment. Besides, everybody uses Gravity.'

'And that makes it all right? You ... you-' Draco stopped himself and turned away, feeling shame wash over him, drowning him. 'You _whored_ me out to your men-'

'NO!' Adam yelled with such force that Draco jumped again. Adam's wide eyes matched Draco's, but they were filled with a fierce emotion the smaller man could not identify. 'Don't you dare accuse me of that! I never knew about it! They tricked you. I would never have shared you-' Adam took an abrupt step back, his eyes leaving Draco, who felt tears stinging in his eyes.

'How could you not know?' he demanded.

'I can't keep track of everything!' Adam shouted, starting to pace. 'It's not my fault you did whatever anyone told you.'

'Then ... how did you find out?' A growling sound came from the other man as he paced his cage like an animal.

'They were boasting about it, the idiots, thinking that I wouldn't care!'

'Why do you care?' That stopped the man in his tracks.

'Well, I don't- anymore-'

'But?'

'Argh! What do you think!?' Adam raged. 'I've been looking for you night and day since you were kidnapped ... only you weren't, were you?' he added bitterly.

'No, I was rescued,' Draco whispered.

'Rescued?' Adam asked incredulously. 'So, you really hated living with us? Normal people are beneath you, are they?'

'No! That's not it at all!' Draco made a frustrated noise at the back of his throat. He felt out of control of his emotions and thoughts. He felt hot in the cold room and shrugged out of the long cloak, not caring that he was only in pyjamas. Adam looked him up and down and made him blush slightly, but he decided to ignore it. 'I had to leave the wizarding world because of the war-'

'But you came to us before the war started!'

'Not that war,' Draco explained. Adam looked confused, and that wasn't odd at all. Why would he know about their war? Draco took a patient breath and tried to explain. 'Our world was at war for years before you ever found out about us.'

'How is that possible? We would have noticed!'

'We've been living in secret for millennia,' Draco pointed out. 'And we've had just as many wars as you.' Adam looked very sceptical, but the fact that he was listening was frankly a miracle. What Draco was trying to accomplish was beyond him, but some part of him needed these two lives to join. 'Anyway, my family ... didn't do so well, so I was ... ostracised from our society and I came to live in the mu- normal world. I had no idea you would find out about magic. I had never intended to return to this world, but then Harry showed up-'

'You knew him?' Adam accused.

'Yes,' Draco admitted, his voice soft now. 'We were rivals at school and on opposing sides of the war, but despite this he insisted I come with him. He held out a hand to me and I took it.' He fell quiet, not knowing what else there was to explain. He chanced a glance at Adam and shrank back at the disgusted look he was given.

'A wart all along. How do you live with yourself knowing you're an abomination of nature?' Draco gasped, turning and heading for the door. Before he reached it, it burst open. The cold wind pushed him backwards, his back hitting the iron bars. Strong arms came around his chest, crushing him against the bars.

Harry stormed into the room, wand already drawn. He was in front of Draco in two strides and his wand came up, pressing it against Adam's throat.

'Let. Him. Go,' Harry growled. Draco gasped for breath, pain racing through him every time his chest expanded and pressed him harder against the bars.

'Gonna use your magic on me?' Adam mocked.

'I'll show you pain you can't even imagine,' Harry threatened.

'Harry, don't...!' Draco gasped and Harry's incredulous gaze flickered to him. At that moment Adam let go and Draco fell into Harry's arms. He was pulled away from the cage. The door was closed to stop the wind and Harry levitated the cloak up and covered Draco with it.

'What the fuck were you thinking?' Harry whispered fiercely. 'Do you have any idea how terrified I was waking up to find you gone, with that madman on the island? And _why the hell_ would you come here anyway?'

'I don't know,' Draco admitted. Harry huffed, hugging him closer. Draco felt warm, but a nice warm this time.

'Let's go.' Draco did not resist as Harry guided him outside into the night. Adam made no sound and Draco did not look back.

Harry even went so far as to tuck him in, but Draco tugged at his sleeve until he got the hint, and crawled in with him. They settled comfortably, with Draco's head on Harry's shoulder.

'Don't do that to me again,' Harry said, a pleading note in his voice.

'I won't. I'm sorry.' They lapsed into silence and Draco almost allowed himself to go back to sleep, but he couldn't until he had asked...

'What is going to happen to him?' Harry sighed, his chest lifting Draco's head.

'I don't know. We're discussing it tomorrow.'

'He's ... a very bad man,' Draco said, to Harry or to himself, he wasn't sure. 'I don't know why I care. I shouldn't...'

'Tell me about your time with him,' Harry urged. Draco tensed up, but when Harry started stroking his back, he calmed.

'He found me when I needed finding,' Draco explained as best he could. 'He gave me what I wanted, at the time. I didn't really realise how ... horrible he was, how far he went. When it was just us he was mostly ... normal.'

'Well, he deserves to be put away for life, but we don't exactly have the capacity for that,' Harry pointed out.

'What has the muggle government said about the incident?'

'We'll know tomorrow. You made a quick recovery, or rather, you're making a quick recovery, but you're not quite there yet, so go to sleep.' Draco nodded against Harry's chest. He was exhausted, so it didn't take long at all for him to drift away, snug and warm in Harry's embrace.

_'Oh, bloody hell, yeah, that's it, oh.' Adam was above him, fucking him. A hotel room rotated around them. _

_'Draco, my little whore.' Adam was pounding into him. _

_Harry was in the corner. Staring. His eyes empty. _

_The bed was on the platform. Lucius was in the crowd, holding a gun. _

_'Traitor!' _

'Draco! Wake up!' The shaking woke him up. He was sweaty. It seemed he had fallen asleep only a moment ago. The dream had swallowed him. 'Easy, deep breaths, it was just a dream.' Draco gasped, shaking like a leaf. Harry continued to murmur soothing words, but Draco couldn't hear him over his sobbing.

'It's okay, just a dream.'

Draco knew that, but he hated it nonetheless.


	16. Change

This is the final chapter!

Crazy, I know, but the story does not want anything more written and so, I must leave you with this. Hope you enjoy, it's extra long to make up for it.

Thank you to everyone who has read, commented and enjoyed this story. You're awesome :)

And a huge thank you to Hidden Lily, my brilliant beta :)

-:-

_Chapter 16: Change. _

'"Ladies and gentlemen, citizens of Great Britain, and the world, I have a few words to say, so please hold all questions.

"Yesterday, a tragedy occurred. A great tragedy for this country and for humanity. The final death-toll reached a total of seven people as of a few hours ago. Our hearts go out to those who lost loved ones in such senseless acts of violence.

"After such a day, one cannot help but ask, is this what we have become? A country, a world, divided? And over what? Over a race of people not like us. This situation brings to mind historical events we all thought we would never live to see the like of again, but which I now do not hesitate to compare us with.

"I admit freely, that this situation is also unique in the course of this world's history. Wizards and witches hold real power, and our fear of that power is understandable. What we have forgotten, however, is that these are _people_ with power. They are not animals that exist to hunt us or hurt us.

"I hope everyone heard the words of the young man yesterday, one Harry Potter. His impassioned speech certainly reached me. It made me realise one important thing: that their power is magic, but that magic is just that: magical and unpredictable. Any random child could be born with such power. The question is therefore not how do we control this person, but how do we teach this person control, and teach them good values so that they do not become a threat.

"Certain laws, commonly referred to as Newton's Laws, must be altered. For if we continue down this path then it will not be long before we are building great fires in the middle of squares. And I for one do not wish to live in such a world. I hope we have progressed further than that.

"As for the people currently held in prisons all over the country, all their cases must be reviewed, and get a fair trial.

"Finally, I wish to again extend an invitation to Harry Potter for an open discussion, at a private location this time. And I also hope that the young man, Draco Malfoy, who was the first to be shot, is alive and well. Thank you all for listening."'

Granger finished reading her transcript of the PM's speech. The kitchen was silent. Draco sat very close to Harry, surprised to hear his name mentioned.

'The violence will not stop. If anything it will escalate after such a speech,' Severus proclaimed. There were murmurs of agreement all around.

'But it's a start,' Harry said, sounding ever-so-slightly hopeful.

'A tentative start, but yes,' Severus agreed. 'But do not expect too much. He is one man-'

'But he's very popular in the polls,' Granger pointed out.

'That will no doubt change after this.' They all nodded regretfully at that. Draco only hoped that his approval didn't drop too much.

'Should I meet with him?' Harry asked.

'Yes, but we must be more careful this time,' Severus all but ordered in his professor tone. 'Contact Lucius for a location we can spell safe.'

'Are you sure that's wise?' Granger asked. 'Maybe we shouldn't involve Malfoy in this.'

'He knows the PM and what the man will find acceptable. It is foolish to ignore inside information.'

'But he could be planning something-'

'Lucius Malfoy wants what we want at this point-'

'Draco, what do you think?' Harry cut through the rising bickering. Draco hated being put on the spot, but he focused on Harry and answered truthfully.

'I don't really know.'

'Come on, you must have an opinion.'

'I-... Severus is right. My father would not do anything to jeopardize this.' Harry nodded in agreement and they discussed the details for quite a while longer. Finally, however, the conversation turned to Adam.

'We should turn him in to the muggle authorities,' was Granger's suggestion.

'And what do you think they'll do?' Severus asked with a raised eyebrow.

'Release him, most likely,' Arthur Weasley spoke up, surprising Draco with the bitterness in this voice.

'We can't keep him here,' the youngest Weasley pointed out. 'Can we?'

'No,' Severus declared adamantly. 'He needs to be ... taken care of.'

'You're not seriously suggesting ...!' Granger spluttered.

'Suggesting what Miss Granger?'

'The bastard deserves it,' Harry muttered darkly, but only Draco seemed to hear it.

'Severus Snape, you will not pretend you would condone such an act,' Molly Weasley said sternly. 'We are not his judges and certainly not executioners!'

'Well, Draco's the one who got shot,' Ron Weasley pointed out, shocking Draco by the use of his first name. They had hardly interacted at all. Little did Draco know, it had been Harry who had convinced the redhead to use Draco instead of Malfoy to separate the two Malfoys in the young man's mind. 'Maybe he should decide.'

Once again all eyes were on him and Draco felt his face heat as he stared at the table. Harry put a reassuring arm around his shoulders, but that only made him blush more to be so openly comforted.

'He's not a nice man,' he forced out. His voice had very little strength in it. 'I know he's killed others. But I wouldn't want any of us to be lowered to his level. Maybe...' _'But no, that was impossible. None of the others would even consider it. They would laugh at me for making the suggestion,' _Draco thought.

'What?' Harry prodded. 'Please, tell me what you're thinking.'

'No,' Draco shook his head, staring resolutely at the table. 'It's stupid, crazy.'

'Oh, for Merlin's sake boy, spit it out,' Severus growled.

'Don't yell at him,' Harry leapt to his defence.

'I wasn't yelling.'

'I think it's well established that you're not exactly good at encouraging people, so stay out of this.'

'Draco is my godson and I will not "stay out of" anything that concerns him.'

'Boys, boys,' Molly interrupted. 'All our nerves are frayed after yesterday and Draco's near miss, but arguing is not helping _anybody._' Draco's eyebrows furrowed in thought at Molly's words and he chanced a glance up to see that people were visibly trying to calm down. The very idea that more than just Harry and Severus had been worried about him left him quite flabbergasted, but there was Ron putting an arm around Hermione's shoulders, and all the others nodding in agreement. No one snorted at the thought, or protested her words at all.

'Yes, we were all worried about you,' Harry said quietly, his lips right by Draco's ear suddenly. Draco turned his head instinctively and his lips were caught in a soft kiss. He couldn't help his eyes fluttering shut, as they almost always did when Harry kissed him. The room disappeared for all of five seconds, before Harry pulled back slowly and Draco blinked his eyes open, finding his love smiling fondly at him.

'If you're quite finished,' Severus drawled and Draco's cheeks immediately reddened to resemble two tomatoes. 'Can we now finally hear Draco's opinion on his would-be assassin?'

Draco glanced around the table and found only expectant looks. He cleared his throat, knowing it would come out squeaky if it didn't.

'Perhaps, we could consider... giving him a second chance, of sorts.'

'What?!'

'Hear me out,' Draco begged and Harry fell silent. 'I mean ... it would also be a death-sentence, for the person we know as Adam.'

'You're talking about Obliviation,' Severus surmised.

'Yes,' Draco said, nodding. 'We remove everything. All memories of his life, and all his skills surrounding the military.'

'Wouldn't that be a terribly complicated undertaking?' Hermione asked.

'Yes, but there is a ritual,' Severus explained. 'Although it is designed to remove memories, not skills. Those we will have to do by Obliviation spells, somewhat altered perhaps, but it is certainly possible.'

'But that just lets him off the hook!' Harry protested. 'How can you want that?'

'But Adam would be gone, Harry,' Draco explained as calmly as he could. Inside he was actually pretty scared, for he was discussing killing a person, or identity rather. 'Just as gone as if we had executed him. Only now, his soul has a chance of being the good man I sometimes saw.'

'And we don't get the guilt,' Harry added. Draco looked away, but nodded. 'Couldn't the memories resurface?'

'Not with the ritual,' Severus explained. 'Well, there is always the possibility of something going wrong and complications could arise, but if done properly the ritual is much safer than the spell, because it is designed to remove everything.'

'Let's do it, then,' Harry said in his typical Gryffindor fashion. No point in waiting if it's decided.

'We should vote on it,' Draco said, causing several eyebrows to rise. 'We'll need practically everybody for the ritual.'

'You remember it then?' Severus asked, something resembling pride in his voice and Draco couldn't help but press that pride to his heart.

'Yes, and so everybody should agree before we proceed.'

In the end they all agreed, despite some reservations from Molly, but after they promised not to just turn him loose on the street, but make sure he was taken care of to some extent, they started planning the ritual. Harry had wanted to be the caster in the ritual, but Draco insisted, saying that it was his duty as the afflicted party. Severus and Draco worked on the potions for hours, only stopping for lunch when Harry brought it to them. Then, at around eight o'clock that evening, they gathered in front of the cage.

'Jesus Christ, there's a whole stinking tribe of you warts,' Adam sneered. Harry, his shoulders tense and the knuckles on his wand-hand white, cast a spell to disappear the bars. Everybody spread out into positions.

'Come here,' Harry ordered. Adam eyed the people slowly surrounding him, and obeyed. Harry, Draco and Adam stood in the middle of a circle. 'Kneel,' Harry bit out, his wand aimed at Adam's chest. Adam obeyed again, the look of disdain and disgust never leaving his face. Harry looked at Draco, who nodded, and then Harry went to take his place in the circle.

Draco stood in front of Adam, his former lover, his drug supplier, his attempted murderer. He breathed calmly, trying to show no emotion. Around him candles were being lit, floating up above them. Draco took out the first little bottle and held it out. He hoped his hand wasn't shaking.

'Drink it.'

'Fuck off,' Adam replied. 'You're bleeding mad.'

'You either drink it, or I cast a spell that makes you into a statue, unable to move, and open your mouth and pour it in. You could choke, but it's a risk I'm willing to take.' Draco was surprised by the coldness in his voice, but glad of it all the same. He needed the Malfoy detached air about him now, at least on the outside.

Adam grabbed the bottle, uncorked it and downed the contents. He threw the bottle to the side afterwards, but a hastily cast shield prevented it from hurting anyone.

Suddenly, he gasped and doubled over, clutching his head between his hands. Draco watched passively until the right moment. He darted his eyes up to check that everyone held their wands ready and then Adam lurched up again, eyes wide and staring at the candles above him as if in a trance. Draco placed the tip of his wand on Adam's forehead, very grateful that his hand didn't shake too much so as to make it impossible to do it properly. He allowed himself one moment of weakness and closed his eyes just as he cast the spell.

'_E__xinanire.' _

Slowly, liquid-like blue snakes poured forth, flowing in all directions, gaining momentum as they reached the circle. It was a good thing they were many, so that all the memories got caught. If not, then they could find their way back and they'd have to start again. Draco kept his concentration on Adam, but could see in his peripheral vision that the memories were being caught by the people in the circle and sent into a large bottle each had in hand, which would be destroyed afterwards. Everyone looked focused and caught every one, despite the growing number of tendrils flowing from Adam. Luckily he wasn't so old as to make the task almost impossible.

Draco was beginning to sweat from focusing his power so long on a single point, but then, finally, the memories ceased. Draco let his arm drop, breathing heavily and watched as Adam slumped slightly, his eyes going misty for a few moments, his skin pallid.

Draco watched, fascinated and undeniably horrified, as Adam slowly regained his colour and his eyes grew clear again. He blinked several times and then looked up at Draco, a curious expression on his face.

'Hello ... who are you?'

'Drink this, it will make you feel better,' Draco said, holding out the second bottle. Adam took it from him, a small frown on his face, but he uncorked it and drank it down. Afterwards he closed his eyes for a moment and then sighed.

'That's cleared my headache.' _'And sealed the ritual forever,' _Draco added mentally. Adam smiled gratefully up at him. 'Thank you.' Draco couldn't bear it and turned away, guilt washing over him. Harry was there in a second, leading him away with a firm arm at his back. 'What's going on?' he heard Adam ask just as they exited the building.

Harry led him straight to their room and sat Draco down on the bed, sitting as close as possible and with an arm around him. Draco breathed deeply several times, trying to focus on other things.

Adam was gone, as good as dead, and Draco had been the one to do it, but for some reason he felt more guilty over not feeling as guilty as he should... the thought of which made his head hurt, and it did not mean he didn't feel any guilt at the act itself, for there was plenty of that too. He put his head in his hands.

'It was the right thing to do,' Harry whispered.

'No, it wasn't. No matter what we did, it wouldn't have been right. He never got a fair trial.'

'We don't have the luxury of a civilized society out here. And it's his kind that's banished us here, so I think it's entirely justified.' That made Draco feel a little better. Harry leaned in close and started pressing kisses on his cheek and ear, along the pale jaw as far as he could reach. Draco turned his head, supplying him with more and sighed as Harry started kissing him properly. Harry could make him forget, just for a moment. Another moment of weakness perhaps, but Draco was no stranger to those he felt.

Soon they had their arms around each other, exploring each others' mouths.

'You know,' Harry breathed between snogs, 'I never actually-...' Their tongues danced a moment. 'I mean, we never managed to go ... all the way.'

'A grave oversight on your part, I believe,' Draco said, though it lacked the sardonic drawl he had been going for, instead coming out in a horny pant. Harry nipped his lip in retaliation.

'You're just so irresistible,' he hissed. 'I want you.' Draco wanted nothing more either, but he just prayed to all that was sacred that he didn't think of Adam during- Almost immediately he wished he hadn't thought that as now he was conscious of his attempt of not to think of the man. 'What's the matter? We don't have to, if you'd rather not. We can just, you know, like last time.'

'No, I want to.' Draco kissed Harry even deeper to prove his point, but Harry pushed him away, looking sternly at him.

'Talk. Now.' Draco shut his eyes and looked away. He could _not_ allow Harry to know what he had been thinking. 'Draco, we both know that the only way for us to work is for us to talk. We've both been through so much. It'll just be one misunderstanding after another if we don't get it out in the open... I... I don't want to find you outside on the rocks again.' The open fear in Harry's voice made Draco open his eyes and look into Harry's. The green was shimmering and beautiful, as always, but marred slightly by unnecessary fear - for Draco would never leave Harry no matter what.

'The last person I was with-' Draco bit his words off, but Harry knew. His eyes both lit up with recognition and darkened with many emotions, almost simultaneously.

'Then I'll just have to make you forget, without a ritual, but it'll be just as effective,' Harry announced. He had that Leader of the Light look in his eyes. The one Draco admired so much, and he felt himself melt rather sappily as Harry determinedly pushed him back on the bed and started removing his clothes.

'Harry, stop a moment,' Draco interrupted just as Harry was about to lick his exposed nipple. 'You don't need to try so hard. Don't expect so much of yourself. Just be _you_ and you'll be better than anyone in the world, to me.' Harry's cheeks pinked, but he smiled in gratitude and some of the fierceness left him. Draco was grateful (though he knew he would like the Leader!Harry in bed when they were more comfortable with such roles), for he wanted just Harry in bed with him tonight.

The return of "just Harry" did not mean his kisses were any less passionate, however, or that they didn't leave a trail of fire wherever they went – and they went _everywhere_. Draco was spread out on the bed, feeling like a worshipped god, and Harry hadn't even taken off his own clothes yet. He didn't know how Harry had gotten hold of lube, but his fingers were certainly moist and slippery as they slid oh-so-deliciously inside him. He loved the way Harry fingered him – he was so relaxed and so goddamn horny that nothing else existed.

'Get. Naked. Now,' he panted. When Harry didn't obey immediately, he kicked him, going for playful and managing a little harder than that.

'Hey! Hold on, little miss bossy,' Harry grumbled, though a smile tugged at his lips. He sat up and started practically ripping his clothes off.

'Little Miss!?' Draco exclaimed, highly offended. He almost wanted to deny Harry his prize, but then Harry's body slithered up his, hot and naked, and all thoughts of retribution were filed away for later. Much, much later.

Harry was slightly awkward as he positioned himself, and his breathing was erratic, but he managed to hit his target, so to speak, and soon they joined.

'Holy Merlin's balls,' Harry half-hissed in pleasure, half-laughed in shocked bliss. Draco pulled him down for a sloppy kiss and rolled his hips to get things started. The bed creaked rather quaintly, but neither cared if anyone heard. Harry pushed himself up a bit to brace himself so he could thrust a little harder and deeper. Draco groaned and threw an arm over his face, but Harry quickly pushed it out of the way and their eyes met. Harry thrust and they both moaned in unison.

Draco would later (much, much later considering the state of his mind at the moment) realise how completely different this experience was to anything he had done in the past. So different, that he hadn't even thought of anything else in existence while Harry possessed him so thoroughly.

Draco tried lifting his legs a bit – Harry grabbed them and threw them over his shoulders. The sight was so erotic Draco just had to grab his prick, which made Harry groan for similar reasons. The proper fucking began in earnest, Draco concluded, and felt himself nearing the precipice.

By the time they were so close it almost hurt, the bed was knocking about like a bowling ball on a ship, and Draco's head was dangerously close to the wall.

'I'm-' Draco never finished his sentence, as his release blinded him. Distantly, he heard Harry growl obscene things as he shuddered above him. Draco grunted when Harry landed on top of him, but didn't have the strength to do much about it.

'Why haven't we been doing this since, oh, I don't know, we met?' Harry laughed as he snuggled into a more comfortable position. Draco summoned his wand and cleaned them up.

'We were too busy fighting each other, and after that, to stay alive.' Harry fell silent and Draco regretted not having said something funny instead. Harry's hand came to rest of Draco's chest.

'I don't want to fight anymore,' Harry breathed so softly Draco barely heard it. He tightened his hold on his lover.

'Neither do I,' he admitted freely. 'It's okay not to want to fight anymore. You've done more than enough.'

'It's not enough until it's over,' Harry countered sadly.

'Maybe it will be, soon,' Draco suggested. 'The PM sounded very sincere.'

'Yeah ... maybe ... I love you.'

'I love you more,' Draco whispered, quoting something his mother used to say to him.

'I love you most,' Harry countered and Draco barked a laugh out because that was exactly what he always replied. 'Sorry,' Harry said sheepishly. 'I guess I'm quite the sap with you.'

'No, it's not that,' Draco explained, but then fell silent. He hadn't thought about his mother in ages.

'What then?' Draco took a deep breath and began talking, and Harry listened. And it felt unexpectedly yet wonderfully _good_.

XXX

A little over six months later most of the Newton's Laws were gone or had been altered. People had been let out of prison, though many cases had still to be reviewed. Harry's speech, as well as the PM's had been broadcast around the world, and some countries had taken similar action. There had been more riots, more violence, but never as bad as that one day. Wizards and witches still lived in hiding, but in a way that was how it had always been and they were reluctant to change that.

The Order abandoned Jan Mayen and returned to Azkaban to rebuild it now that the government weren't actively hunting them. It became a place for orphans and homeless, and soon a place with windows and light instead of gloom and darkness. There were many problems still remaining, but in many ways the fighting was coming to a close. The future was uncertain, but more hopeful.

About a year later Ron and Hermione, along with Draco and Harry a month after, bonded. They all settled in Azkaban to continue their work, but Harry and Draco had their own little flat within the complex, and it truly felt like home.

As for Lucius Malfoy, he disappeared again and Draco got a letter from him every few months, usually from somewhere in East Asia, but it seemed he travelled everywhere. The letters were vague, but showed that his father still thought of him, and that was something Draco had to treasure.

Neville Longbottom never recovered fully from what the military had done to him, but he did eventually resemble his old self. He and Ginny built and planted a greenhouse inside Azkaban and produced most of the food for the institution. He would always have trouble with his memory, but his green thumbs worked perfectly.

Both Draco and Harry received counselling from the same mind-healer as Neville, for both acknowledged the past could not be ignored. They retained the witch on staff and she helped heal a great many wounds that had left no visible scars among the population.

The world turned and soon the riots of the previous year had become history, and promises were made to ensure they never happened again. After everything they had been through, and to some extent were still going through, Harry doubted such promises. It wasn't until he saw Lucius Malfoy on a muggle talkshow in the US that he thought maybe, just maybe, the world was changing.

Draco's jaw had almost hit his knees at the sight, and Harry had laughed and kissed him, right there in the internet café. Then they had gone home and Draco pretended to interview Harry on the more intimate details of his private life.

The End.


End file.
